Broadcaster and former England striker Gary Lineker has locked horns with boxer Anthony Fowler on the topic of climate change.
The 61-year-old has been vocal on the matter in the past, while also remaining reluctant to stay out of any topic he sees fit to discuss. He recently responded to resignations from Boris Johnson's cabinet, for example, while also sharing his opinion on Mick Lynch's appearance on Question Time.
After speaking up about the human response to climate change, Lineker was met with a number of responses, with Fowler among those to chip in. However, the ex-footballer was blunt in his response to the Commonwealth Games gold medalist.
"Terrifying that we’re not doing everything possible immediately to address climate change," Lineker tweeted on Saturday. "A catastrophic mistake."
The post had received more than 300 quote-tweets by midday on Sunday. One of those was from Fowler, who asked "How much are they paying you to push this agenda?".
"What? Not a single penny," was Lineker's response. "The reward would be a future for my children and their children."
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Lineker wasn't the only person to respond to Fowler, who won gold at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. "The agenda of science and reality?" was one of the responses.
"It's not an agenda; it's just a simple fact," said another. "We don't do something; we wreck the only home humankind has - if it's not already too late."
The 31-year-old boxer, who also won bronze at the 2013 World Championships, has a 16-2 professional level. His most recent win came in February this year.
Lineker's stance on climate change is nothing new. Last summer, the presenter took aim at a BBC article which suggested there were "positives" to climate change, tweeting "this has to be a spoof".
In a separate tweet on Sunday morning, he made his stance even more clear. "One group has a vested interest in our survival. One group has a vested interest in their bank accounts," he said. Believe the scientists, not the climate change deniers."
This year, meanwhile, he praised climate protestors who drew attention to the situation at the British Grand Prix. "If it’s not already too late, history will look back very favourably on these people," he said.
Lineker's comments weren't universally popular, though, with former Formula 1 driver Martin Brundle among those to hit back. "Gary please don’t encourage this reckless behaviour," Brundle replied.
"They’d have been sliced into 100 pieces and fans, marshals and drivers were wholly at risk of injury and death. We already had one lucky escape. I totally 100% support freedom of speech and opinion, but do it responsibly."
