Olympian Frederick Richard attempting backflip world record to raise money for gymnasts in Africa
Olympic medalist and Stoughton, Massachusetts native Frederick Richard is trying to break a world record for the most backflips done in 24 hours.
Known as "Frederick Flips" on social media, the gymnast is live-streaming his efforts to raise money for high-level gymnastics equipment for kids in Africa.
Providing gymnastics equipment for African children
"Gymnastics is not cheap. Equipment is expensive," said Richard in a post on Instagram. "That's why it's so hard to get into. We're trying to change that."
The 21-year-old needs to average one flip per minute to keep on world record pace. He said the hometown support means the world to him.
"Massachusetts has been a huge part. We're actually doing this world record in the first gym that I started in," said Richard. "It's made this whole journey really fun, honestly a lot easier than it could have been without these people. So it's been everything."
Needs 1,002 backflips to break record
Richard needs to complete 1,002 backflips to claim the record and hopes to raise $100,000 in the process. The current record is 1,001.
"We've broke down cost of what equipment I want to bring there. Mats, springboards, trampolines, mini trampolines. That's to start them off," said Richard. "Storage facilities, logistics of shipping. And that's what it's going to take to really make a big difference."
A live-painting event is just one of the things on the scheduled to keep interest up on the livestream. All of the artwork created, including a piece by Richard himself, will be auctioned off with proceeds going to help train kids in Africa.
"Fred has always been passionate about bringing more eyes to the sport of gymnastics and bringing more young boys into the sport and growing the sport," said Richard's mother, Ann-Marie. "I am just so proud of this boy, his focus, his passion."
"The rest of my career is definitely going to be about helping kids that are underprivileged get those resources to do sports that they love to do, things that are fun and reach their full potential," said Richard.
Richard expects to complete his world record attempt early Saturday morning.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
‘Third-best season ever': Over 6.5 million skiers visited Utah's resorts during the season
SALT LAKE CITY () — 'Greatest snow on Earth,' Utah's long-running slogan, is proving itself true after another successful season at Utah's ski resorts. According to Ski Utah, this last season was the third-best in state history. There are 15 ski resorts across Utah, and together they recorded 6,503,635 visitors during the 2024-25 season, which has just wrapped up. According to a press release from Ski Utah, this is the third-highest number of skier visits in state history. This season's skier visits were down 3.6% from last year, the press release says, but the more than 6.5 million visitors this year show a 3.3% increase over Utah's five-year average. Utah's economy benefits greatly from recreation at the ski resorts. Ski Utah's president and CEO, Nathan Rafferty, emphasized skiing's impact on Utah. EXCLUSIVE: Utah man who underwent 120 surgeries advocates for rare disease awareness in Washington, D.C. 'To hit our third-best season ever and generate $2.51 billion for Utah's economy is a major win,' Rafferty is quoted in the release. 'The ski industry in Utah supports approximately 25,000 jobs, and with the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games on the horizon, the eyes of the world will be on us once again. We're excited about the opportunities ahead and grateful to all who helped make this season a success.' Ski Utah says that ski resorts are already hard at work to prepare for the upcoming 2034 Winter Olympics. In the next two years alone, 13 new lifts are expected to finish construction and open, and many resorts are planning upgrades to their mountain areas. 'Utah's future as a global winter destination remains as promising as ever,' Ski Utah concluded. Arizona man drowns along San Juan River in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area Charges for trespassing on border military zones 'not going away' Former Utah Supreme Court Chief Justice Gordon Hall dies at 98 Two women charged with felonies after late-night assault in Logan, charges say Death penalty expert weighs in on Menzies competency ruling and appeal Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
England left battered and booed as Senegal expose the flaws Thomas Tuchel must fix
Managing England, as Thomas Tuchel is fast discovering, is harder than it may seem. A chastening week took a turn for the worse, culminating in the boos that followed his first defeat. It is a moot point whether losing to an accomplished Senegal side is actually a better result than only beating Andorra 1-0 but, a year from the World Cup, England looked anything but potential winners. It was a momentous occasion instead for Senegal: when Cheikh Sabaly scored the injury-time third goal, they celebrated becoming the first African team ever to beat England. They did not merely overcome them. They outclassed them. Outpassed, outrun and outwitted, England encountered opponents who were quicker of foot and mind, cleverer and more coherent. That can't all be attributed to Tuchel, in just the fourth game of his reign, but this was a snapshot of familiar England weaknesses. They lost their way after taking an early lead, lacked control in midfield and looked less than the sum of their parts. They were dismal and dreadful. Advertisement Rarely a man to keep his emotions under wraps, Tuchel was visibly irritated. His quixotic moves compounded their difficulties. If friendlies offer a chance to experiment, if he needs to get to know his new charges, if there is an element of trial and error, some of the choices that backfired felt odd. Even the most successful arguably illustrated their problems. Dean Henderson was the first goalkeeper to concede in Tuchel's tenure, but a string of saves illustrated that England at least have a fine alternative to Jordan Pickford. His best stops came in the opening quarter of an hour, blocking Nicolas Jackson's shot with his legs and parrying his Crystal Palace teammate Ismaila Sarr's header. Yet he was overworked, his defence shambolic at times. Tuchel had argued that fielding an all-Chelsea centre-back pairing would help subdue Jackson. They did not, though the debutant Trevoh Chalobah made several timely interventions. Levi Colwill fared worse, while Habib Diarra surged behind left-back Myles Lewis-Skelly for Senegal's second goal. Thomas Tuchel is quickly learning the perils of being England manager (Getty) Yet neither was embarrassed quite as much as the senior citizen in the back four. While Kyle Walker's evening included a guided deep cross that, somehow, Anthony Gordon steered wide from four yards, he offered evidence his 96th cap should be his last. Senegal's equaliser was an indictment of Walker: as Jackson hooked the ball across the penalty area, he was too slow to react as Sarr stole in to finish. Advertisement It should scarcely be news that Walker has lost his speed. A booking for a late challenge on El Hadji Malick Diouf was a case in point: Walker would have got their quicker if he still had his pace. Tuchel had seemed to ignore Walker's performances in his final few months before leaving Manchester City when selecting him. Trent Alexander-Arnold, left unused on the bench, may wonder how he was deemed an inferior option. In midfield, meanwhile, Conor Gallagher was particularly poor in possession. England's formation strayed dangerously close to a lumpen 4-4-2, making it easier for Senegal to outmanoeuvre them. The exception came when Harry Kane dropped deep; at times, he came so deep he materialised behind much of the midfield, doing his impression of a quarterback, an east London Andrea Pirlo, looking to release Gordon, who began with energy and intensity but faded. Kyle Walker was at fault for Senegal's equaliser and could be consigned to the England scrapheap (PA Wire) Kane had started his night in familiar terrain and fashion. Tuchel made 10 changes. One name stayed the same: Kane started and marked a fourth cap under Tuchel with a fourth goal in that time. A tap-in was testament to his predatory instincts, even if much of the credit belonged to Eberechi Eze, for winning the ball from Lamine Camara, and Gordon, whose shot was parried into Kane's path. A 107th cap took him past Sir Bobby Charlton; Kane now has as many goals as Charlton and Geoff Hurst combined. Advertisement But England are yet to get goals from many of their other attacking talents under Tuchel. When Kane went off, the German initially played without a specialist striker; a slight, perhaps, for Ivan Toney, who was confined to a late cameo, as Morgan Rogers and Eze operated in central attacking roles, with neither as an out-and-out centre-forward. One substitute thought he had equalised, Jude Bellingham celebrating what seemed a leveller, only for his volley to be disallowed because Colwill had handled. Another substitute almost brought England level twice. The Nottingham Forest favourite Morgan Gibbs-White was bright and prominent on home soil as Edouard Mendy made two fine saves, denying him and Bukayo Saka. Morgan Gibbs-White was prominent on home soil (Getty) But no sooner had Gibbs-White come on than England were behind, Diarra shooting through Henderson's legs. And another England replacement inadvertently set up their third goal, Curtis Jones losing the ball and Camara, in redemptive fashion, powering away to find Sabaly. After three wins for England came three goals in a loss. Senegal are much the best side they have faced under Tuchel, but they could face far better again next summer. To say this bodes badly is an understatement. The rest of the world's nations are unlikely to be quaking in their boots. Watch every Fifa Club World Cup game free on DAZN. Sign up here now.
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
LPGA Hall of Famer calls for more to speak out against trans athletes in girls sports
LPGA Hall of Famer calls for more to speak out against trans athletes in girls sports Betsy King grew up on 30 acres of land in Reading, Pennsylvania, where she honed a golf swing that would eventually land her in the LPGA and World Golf halls of fame. But golf wasn't her only passion. When older brother Lee left the house, mom often said, 'Take your sister.' And that's how King wound up playing baseball, basketball, hockey and, in elementary school, and tackle football with the neighborhood boys. Those memories come flooding back when King, a six-time major winner, sees biological males competing against females across the country. 'You know, when I was playing with the boys,' said King, 'I mean, it definitely helped my competitiveness to play then against other girls. But I was just trying to play well enough that that they would let me play. Obviously, even at that age, there was a physical difference.' Last week, Olympic gymnast Simone Biles made headlines when she called NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines a 'bully' and 'sore loser' for her criticism of biological boys competing in women's sports – in this particular instance, a high school state championship. Four days later, Biles apologized for her comments. 'In my mind, all I could think about is if a transgender woman started competing in what she (Biles) does, I think they could dominate,' said King, 'without a doubt.' Last December, the LPGA and U.S. Golf Association announced changes to their transgender policies that prohibit athletes who have experienced male puberty from competing in women's events. The move came as transgender golfer Hailey Davidson earned status on the LPGA's developmental Epson Tour. Sources say only a handful of LPGA players were in favor of allowing transgender athletes to compete. Even so, for King, the fight is far from over. Now she'd like to see a federal law put into place that would restrict the participation of biological males in female sports. In February, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that called on the government to "rescind all funds from educational programs that deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities." But that hasn't kept it from happening at high school competitions across the country. President Trump said last week that California would face large-scale fines after a transgender athlete won two medals in the state's track and field championship. 'I just feel badly for the high school girls that have to face it,' said King. 'You know, I've seen a couple of them on TV talking about it. And it really bothers me that the adults haven't stood up for these girls as much as they should.' As for the LPGA's new policy, King would like to see the tour return to a female-at-birth mandate, calling the trend of childhood transitions frightening. "I don't know that at 7 years old, if you really know what you are, who you are, or know what you want to do, to make a decision that will impact you the rest of your life," said King. "We don't listen to many 7-year-olds about a lot of things, right? That you would decide to listen to them about this is kind of frightening." A New York Times/Ipsos survey released in January 2025 found that 79 percent of Americans polled were against allowing biological males who identify as women to participate in women's sports. And yet, so few Hall of Fame-caliber female athletes have come out publicly against it. King, 69, posts frequently about the topic on social media and was especially disheartened recently when, during a floor debate on the Save Women's Sports Act, Pennsylvania state senator Lindsey Williams said, 'I want all girls to know that there are elected officials like me who believe female bodies are just as strong and fast and capable as male bodies.' King said she found Williams' comments to be ridiculous and went searching to confirm they weren't a parody. Five years ago, tennis icon Billie Jean King joined World Cup champion Megan Rapinoe, the WNBA's Candace Parker and nearly 200 athletes in supporting transgender youth participation in sports as part of a response to Idaho legislation that banned trans girls from competing in schools. 'There is no place in any sport for discrimination of any kind,' Billie Jean King said in a Women's Sports Foundation release. 'I'm proud to support all transgender athletes who simply want the access and opportunity to compete in the sport they love. The global athletic community grows stronger when we welcome and champion all athletes – including LGBTQI+ athletes.' Another tennis icon, Martina Navratilova, however, sees it differently than Billie Jean and has been vocal about the subject for years. She's one of the few decorated female athletes to do so. Growing up, Betsy King didn't have the same opportunities as her brother to play organized sports. As a three-sport athlete at Furman, King recalled going to the president's office each year with other female athletes to ask for more money. Female athletes stood up more back then, she noted, out of necessity. Some in King's circle and beyond have commented that there are more pressing issues currently facing the country. Her response: It's possible to be concerned about more than one subject. For example, in September, she'll head back to Africa for the umpteenth time (26th or 27th, she's not sure) to check in on some schools her Arizona church funds in Tanzania. After winning 34 times on the LPGA, King launched her Golf Fore Africa foundation in 2007 and raised roughly $20 million for World Vision, enough to fund 400 wells, at least 50 mechanized water systems and eight maternity wings for local hospitals. Though her work with the foundation has come to an end, she's finding more ways to use her platform. 'You know, I have nothing to lose,' said King on the divisive gender topic. 'I don't have any sponsorships at this stage. I've always been kind of outspoken and strong about values that I think even if I were playing, I would speak up.' Her mother, Helen Szymkowicz King, graduated from the University of Rhode Island in 1940 and was elected into the university's Athletic Hall of Fame as a three-sport athlete. King looks at how much the landscape has changed for women's sports in recent decades and views the transgender debate as a step backward. 'Many of us fought for places to compete when none existed,' King said. 'We cannot surrender our sports or our spaces.' Put another way by one of golf's most decorated American players: It's simply not fair.
