A prominent Australian television reporter apologised today after slurring her way through a live broadcast from the Winter Olympics in a clip that went viral.

Channel Nine’s Danika Mason admitted she “had a drink” before delivering her sports update from the Italian Alps on Wednesday.

She stumbled over several words and spoke about everything from the price of coffee in Italy to iguanas in the United States, leaving her co-hosts in the studio bemused.

One of them attempted to explain away her condition by claiming it was difficult to speak when reporting from cold climates.

“I just want to take a moment, if that’s okay, just to apologise,” Mason said at the end of her update today.

“I also wanted to thank everyone who has reached out. I’m just a little bit embarrassed. I totally misjudged a situation.

“I shouldn’t have had a drink, and especially in these conditions - it’s cold, we’ve got altitude, and not having had dinner probably didn’t help as well.

“But I want to take full responsibility. It’s not the standard that I set for myself.”

Studio host Karl Stefanovic, also a high-profile personality, responded by saying: “Don’t worry about it. Let’s move on. You’re a legend.”

-Agence France-Presse