A Mexican engineer has apologised and lost his leadership role in a professional engineering association after a video showed him making a racist gesture towards a South Korean football fan during a World Cup match in Guadalajara.Ulises Fernando Bernal Miramontes was filmed making a racist gesture at a Korean fan. (Instagram/@inocat_t)The man was identified as Ulises Fernando Bernal Miramontes, who was serving as president of the College of Geomatics and Topographic Surveying Engineers of the State of Jalisco (CITGEJ).Video sparks outrage onlineThe controversy began when South Korean YouTuber Yoon Su-jin, better known online as Ino Cat, shared a video from the South Korea vs Czech Republic FIFA World Cup match held at Estadio Akron last week, BBC reported.In the clip, Bernal, who was seated behind her, appeared to look at the camera and pull the corners of his eyes before laughing. The gesture is widely regarded as offensive towards people of East Asian descent.Yoon posted the video on social media with the caption: "You traveled across the world for the World Cup… and experienced racism."The video quickly spread online, drawing tens of thousands of comments and prompting widespread criticism.Mexicans condemn the incidentMany social media users, including several who identified themselves as Mexican, criticised Bernal's behaviour and apologised to Yoon.Comments included: "That guy doesn’t represent us as Mexicans", "As a fellow Mexican, I am ashamed" and "I apologise on his behalf".As the backlash grew, internet users matched the man in the video with publicly available photographs and identified him as Bernal. Calls soon emerged for CITGEJ to take action.Bernal issues public apologyFollowing the backlash, Bernal released a public statement apologising for his actions."For that reason, I believe it is important to offer a public apology," he wrote, according to a report in The Independent."I sincerely regret everything this situation has caused. I have taken time to reflect on what happened and I understand the responsibility I have in this moment."(Also read: Indian man alleges Canadian woman told him to ‘go back’, she denies racism claims)He added that he did not wish to "justify [himself nor debate different interpretations].""Throughout my personal and professional life, I have always tried to treat others with respect, and I will continue working to ensure that my actions consistently reflect those values," he said.Engineering association removes him from postCITGEJ also released a statement distancing itself from the incident and reaffirming its commitment to respect and inclusion.The organisation said it "deeply regret[s]" what had happened and launched an internal review into the matter.It later confirmed that Bernal had been removed from his position as president."In accordance with our statutes and regulations, the matter will be reviewed through the corresponding internal mechanisms," the association's board said.The guild added that it remains committed to "promoting a culture of respect, hospitality, and healthy coexistence for all people".