Cycling star is warned not to swear after saying 'p**s' twice on live TV - and you WON'T believe what he does next

Nathan Van Hooydonck was left red-faced on TV The retired cyclist swore while on punditry duty He left his fellow pundits in stitches with his comments 

Cycling star Nathan Van Hooydonck was left red-faced following a hilarious moment on live TV while covering Giro D'Italia.

Van Hooydonck, 27, retired from the sport last year due to heart issues and was invited onto the Eurosport panel to discuss the day's events, but it was clear to see the Dutchman needs to brush up on his on-air skills.

Reflecting on a race in Tirrendo-Adriatico a few years ago, Van Hooydonck's anecdote contained a couple of swear words.

'It was a very hard pace in the bunch,' he began. '[Tadej] Pogocar's team was pacing and I was suffering in the wheels and he stopped for a p**s and I looked at him and I was like 'wow, he stops for a p**s right now!'

Presenter Orla Chennaoui was quick to jump in and remind Van Hooydonck: 'We say pee, we say pee.'

Nathan Van Hooydonck was left red-faced after swearing four times on live TV

The 27-year-old retired from cycling last year due to heart issues

'Oh sorry!' the 27-year-old said. 'He stopped for a pee.'

'A tinkle,' Chennaoui replied. 'That'll do!'

After the light-hearted warning, Van Hooydonck continued his story, and left the panel in stitches when he immediately forgot the 'no swearing' rule.

'And he was back in no time,' he said of Pogocar. 'The peloton was all stretched out and he just rode back very easily.

'Then I heard him saying to his teammates, 'phwoar, in the back they're suffering, eh?'

'I looked at him and I was like 'f***, you don't know how strong you are!''

Laughing, Chennaoui said: 'Apologies again, we're not allowed to use the f-word on television.'

A stunned Van Hooydonck then exclaimed: 'Oh s***!' which left the rest of the panel, including Aussie cycling hero Robbie McEwen in stitches.

'We use it liberally in the green room but we try not to on TV!' Chennaoui finished as the programme moved on.

He was commentating on the Giro D'Italia for Eurosport

Van Hooydonck was fitted with an internal defibrillator to help deal with a heart muscle anomaly, having been involved in a car accident last year when he fell ill at the wheel.

'I realise that I was incredibly lucky,' said Van Hooydonck.

'Things may have gone differently if I hadn't got good help so quickly. I'm fine now, but I still have to deal with the fact that this marks the end of my professional career.

'I would like to express my gratitude to the people who helped me, the medical team at the hospital and all the fans who sent me messages.'