Touchy, touchy.
Referee Kevin Fahy on Sunday ejected Astou Ndour of the WNBA’s Chicago Sky after she appeared to accidentally make contact with his stomach as he walked into her. (See the clip below.)
“I have always shown great respect for the referees and my career supports me,” Ndour wrote on Twitter with a clip of the incident after her team lost 100-86 to the host Washington Mystics. “I still don’t understand very well what happened today and I don’t agree, but I respect the decision.”
Fortunately, the WNBA on Monday erased the referee’s actions.
“After a league review, we have determined that the technical foul against Chicago’s Astou Ndour should not have been assessed,” League Operations head Bethany Donaphin wrote in a statement. “The technical foul and subsequent ejection have been rescinded.”
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Ndour was trying to show Fahy a mark on her arm, but Fahy wasn’t looking and walked into her open palm. He then threw her out.
“If you know Astou, you know she’s nothing like that,” Sky Coach James Wade told the Sun-Times. “I thought it was a little premature, but the ref thought he had to do what he had to do.”
Teammate Alexandria Quigley, who was talking to Fahy when the contact happened, tweeted incredulously that all three referees reviewed the play “and STILL decided this warranted an ejection!!!!”
Folks on social media called foul on the referee.
The Sky begin the playoffs on Wednesday against the Phoenix Mercury.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this article misnamed the Phoenix Mercury as the San Jose Mercury.
