Fatso throws weight on Syd, Milli, Oly

Their two-hour programme quot;The Dreamquot; airs on Seven Network, which has exclusive broadcast rights in Australia to the Games.

Ratings have climbed from 58.5 per cent on Sunday to 69.6 per cent on Thursday in Sydney and from 49.6 per cent to 61.9 per cent in Melbourne.

Slaven and Nelson, known as Roy and HG, have made a career out of sending up xenophobes, homophobes and pretty much everyone, including themselves, but can leave the uninitiated with mouth agape. Foreigners have been a frequent target on The Dream 8211; if they try to say quot;G8217;dayquot; but don8217;t say it right, just walk away, Roy and HG counsel Australians. They8217;ve relied most heavily on certain bits of the male anatomy, skewering macho athletic attitudes in the process. Gymnastics officials might score male athletes doing handstands and splits mid-air but Roy and HG, in the Sports commentator8217;s hushed monotone, grade manoeuvres called Party Date and Hello Boys.

But they8217;ve saved their fiercest, funniest attacks for official Olympics mascots, Millie the spiny anteater, Olly the kookaburra and Syd the platypus. Roy and HG have Fatso the Fat-Arsed Wombat, the anti-mascot who walks across the television screen during replays of less than stellar Olympic moments, leaving droppings in his wake. Fatso found instant celebrity when Australian swimmer Michael Klim carried a stuffed likeness of the tubby wombat onto the victory dais on Tuesday. Klim and teammates Ian Thorpe, Todd Pearson and Bill Kirby won gold in the 4215;200 freestyle relay.

In a statement on Friday, Fatso said the relay team would now officially be known as quot;The Fatso Fourquot;.

Also in the statement, Fatso said he was committed to bringing Equatorial Guinea8217;s Eric Moussambani together with Klim for a stroke correction clinic.

Earlier this week, Moussambani became an overnight sensation for his performance in the pool after swimming one of the slowest races in Olympic history.