'Sydney Sweeney, do better': Aussie Olympians pillory sport betting ad

Australian Olympians are among a slew of female athletes criticising a hyper-sexualised ad for a sports betting company featuring actress Sydney Sweeney.

In the advertisement, Sweeney appears mostly in the nude while mock playing a number of sports.

Swimming great Ariarne Titmus was one of a number of female athletes who called out the ad and the actress for setting back women in sport.

Dozens of athletes have taken aim at a highly sexualised advertisement for a betting company featuring actress Sydney Sweeney, accusing it of belittling women in sport.

The ad shows Sweeney in little to no clothing as she plays mock tennis, golf, baseball and ice hockey, holds basketballs, footballs and a soccer ball, and boasts about punters being able to bet on "just sports".

"So they wanted to show just sports," she says while perched topless on top of a basketball hoop.

After saying "sports" nine times, she appears topless on a pool table, before saying: "You can't trade this, I just look good here."

The advertisement has been widely criticised, particularly by female athletes, for setting back women in sport.

American gymnast Gracie Kramer was one of the first to respond with an Instagram reel reading: "idk what Sydney Sweeney was doing, but this is what a woman in sport looks like."

"Because it really is that deep," she wrote in the caption, kicking off a trend among some of the best athletes around the world.

A slew of Australian Olympians are part of the chorus, with even the AIS posting: "THIS is sport", featuring a number of women athletes with the same backing track as the ad.

Swimming great Ariarne Titmus commented on the ad on Instagram, where it has been viewed over 33 million times, describing it as "an absolute joke".

"I can't describe how infuriated I feel when I watch this," the four-time Olympic gold medallist wrote on her stories.

"Not only is it a kick in the face to every woman who has dedicated her life to perfecting her craft, but every woman who enjoys sports for what it really is — teamwork, friendship, dedication, excellence, unity … the list goes on.