Johnny Weir (Photo by Dan Leveille; courtesy Wikimedia Commons)

NEW YORK—Retired figure skater Johnny Weir on Dec. 2 described a group of gay protesters who took issue with his previous comments in support of Russia as “idiots.”

“They say all these stupid things,” Weir told an audience at Barnard College in reference to Queer Nation members who protested outside, according to Gay City News. “I never supported the [Russian] government. I supported the people.”

NBC in October announced Weir, whose husband is of Russian descent, would provide figure skating commentary for the network during the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

A Queer Nation press release said NBC has “embarked on a disinformation campaign to minimize the plight of LGBT Russians in order to justify its involvement in the games.”