Denver sportswriter out of job after tweet about Japanese Indy 500 driver

Verizon IndyCar Series driver Takuma Sato poses with a Japanese flag a day after winning the 101st Running of the Indianapolis 500 (Indy 500) at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. May 29, 2017. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

DENVER (Reuters) - A veteran sportswriter left the Denver Post on Monday after he said he was unsettled by a Japanese driver's victory in the Indianapolis 500 over the Memorial Day weekend, when the United States honours its war dead, including those killed by Japanese forces in World War II.

Terry Frei triggered a firestorm of criticism with his remark, sent over Twitter after Takuma Sato became the first Japanese driver to win the IndyCar motor race. Sato beat 32 other competitors in the prestigious event staged at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, known as the Brickyard.