ABC sport presenter Abbey Gelmi has spoken out about her treatment by Channel Seven after the broadcaster ended her contract just two months after she gave birth to her son Ollie.
The 35-year-old's departure initially appeared amicable when the news broke in February last year, with Gelmi stating it was 'the right time for the next chapter' and the split being reported as a 'mutual decision'.
However, the Offsiders host has now revealed new details about her exit for the first time.
'My son, Ollie, was born in November [2024] and in February I was sat down by Seven and told my contract wasn't being renewed and "don't worry about coming back",' Gelmi told News Corp.
'Not to say anything Seven did wasn't above board, and I'm sure they had their reasoning, but the timing of it – given my son wasn't yet three months old – was really difficult.'
'I was still on maternity leave and it was just a really turbulent time.'
The split with Seven occurred just before she started being harassed by a stalker who sent her repeated calls and messages, including explicit videos sent directly to her phone. Following a police investigation, the Victorian man responsible was jailed.
Gelmi explained that this contributed to people getting the wrong idea about why she left Seven.
'When [the Seven axing] happened, I gave the impression that the time had come for a new chapter,' she said. 'That was me protecting myself, but also processing a level of hurt and embarrassment I felt.'
While the stalker is now behind bars, Gelmi regrets one aspect of her response to the ordeal. The star said she initially did not report the behaviour for about six weeks, believing harassment required a physical presence or a direct threat to her home.
'I thought you could only be harassed or stalked if a person has been in your presence or home … that's not the case,' she previously stated.
'I can't believe it did take me as long as it did to seek police help,' Gelmi said. 'I think that was due to conditioning over a really long period of time – of being a woman in media, and particularly sports media, where part of being online and having any sort of social profile has been receiving explicit messages from men.'
'It's certainly not something I'll tolerate now, and I'm so glad legislation has moved with the times to protect women.'
The Daily Mail has contacted Channel Seven for comment.
