Despite the numerous reports about the less-than-fabulous conditions in Sochi during these Olympic games —  dirty water, disgusting hotel rooms and bathroom stalls that are too close for comfort, not to mention the numerous human and animal rights violations – none hits home quite as viscerally has Bob Costas’ Sochi pink eye. Reportedly caused by unsanitary conditions in Sochi, Costas’ infection quickly spread to a hot, pink mess in both eyes this week, as he tried to maintain his correspondent duties in Harry Potter-esque glasses and a painful-looking squint.

To be fair, I was regularly impacted by pink eye in college. A combination of dorm living and poor contact lens care left me with my fair share of visits to the university clinic for some trusty antibacterial eye drops (Side note: my grandfather, who is a retired optometrist, gave me a great over-the-counter remedy for pink eye: Put a healthy dose of an antibacterial ointment, like Neosporin, in your eye(s) before bed. Gross, but really is it more gross than pink eye? It works wonders, Bob.) That said, I NEVER looked as bad as poor Bob did during his broadcast on Feb. 10. Watching him literally made me cringe and immediately want to wash my hands.

Thankfully for us all, Bob threw in the towel until the infection clears up. Matt Lauer will be filling in while Bob hits the antibiotics and, hopefully, stays quarantined. The last thing the US Olympic Team needs is a massive outbreak of Sochi pink eye, especially among athletes. Somehow I don’t see American figure skater Gracie looking quite so Gold-en with a horrendous pink eye infection, and poor Bob would never live it down.

bob costas sochi pink eye

Ew, Bob Costas. Ew.