Women's Rugby World Cup to offer players ‘mental health support'
TWICKENHAM – Women's Rugby World Cup chiefs have promised to offer players 'mental health support' after saying that female athletes are '30 per cent more likely' to suffer social media abuse than their male counterparts.
While the likes of tournament hosts England are a professional side who have become used to increasing scrutiny, several of the other 15 competing teams are semi-professional or amateur outfits for whom the World Cup will provide a whole new level of exposure.
'Supporting athletes, having an athlete-centred approach, I think, is fundamental to everything that the competition is doing and that we are doing at World Rugby,' said Sally Horrox, the global governing body's head of women's rugby.
'So our performance teams have been working very closely on programmes with the unions to make sure that there is mental health support, for example, for those athletes who are away from home.
'Some of them have families, some of them have other jobs. The game in many parts of the world is still an amateur to semi-professional game, so they will be experiencing something very, very different.
'So we take our responsibilities very seriously.'
Tournament organisers said on Aug 19 they expected the Sept 27 final at Twickenham to feature a sell-out crowd of over 80,000 – a record for any women's rugby match.
Top stories
Swipe. Select. Stay informed.
Singapore 18 persons nabbed and 82 vapes seized in HSA ops in Raffles Place and Haji Lane
Singapore 3 Sengkang Green Primary pupils suspended for bullying schoolmate, with 1 of them caned: MOE
Singapore Woman trapped between train doors: Judge rules SBS Transit '100% responsible'
Singapore Religion growing in importance for Singaporeans: IPS study
Life Record number of arts patrons in 2024, but overall donation dips to $45.74m
Life 'Loss that's irreplaceable': Local film-makers mourn closure of Singapore indie cinema The Projector
Singapore Nearly 2 years' jail, caning for man caught with at least 100 sexually explicit videos of children
Singapore Grab users in Singapore shocked by fares of over $1,000 due to display glitch
More than 375,000 tickets have been sold across all 32 matches at this World Cup, with a huge global television audience anticipated as well.
'We're ready to break records in attendances, viewership and engagement,' tournament director Sarah Massey said during the launch event at Twickenham.
'This is going to be the biggest global celebration of women's rugby that we have ever seen.'
But with that opportunity come attendant risks and World Rugby, in April, announced a collaboration with the Signify Group to use the data organisation's 'Threat Matrix' that monitors social media platforms to detect and report abusive posts and comments.
'No one deserves that type of abuse in this environment,' added Horrox. 'And sadly, female athletes, are 30 per cent more likely to experience this type of abuse than men.'
World Cup favourites England open the tournament against the United States in the northeast city of Sunderland on Aug 22, with the Americans boasting a breakout social media star in Ilona Maher, who has amassed over eight million followers.
Meanwhile in men's rugby, world champions South Africa will play Japan at Wembley on Nov 1 – the first time they have met in England since the Japanese recorded one of the greatest upsets in Rugby World Cup history in 2015.
Japan, then as now coached by Eddie Jones, overcame the Springboks 34-32 in an absolute thriller of a match in Brighton.
South Africa have gone on to beat the 'Brave Blossoms' twice since then, both times in Japan, as well as being crowned world champions in 2019 and 2023 giving them a record four victories in the sport's quadrennial showpiece. AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Jeffrey Epstein grand jury records to remain sealed, US judge rules
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Judge Richard Berman said the material paled in comparison to the trove of records the government has about the case but is not releasing. NEW YORK - A US judge denied on Aug 20 the Justice Department's bid to unseal records from the grand jury that indicted the late financier Jeffrey Epstein on sex trafficking charges, saying the material paled in comparison to the trove of records the government has about the case but is not releasing. Manhattan-based US District Judge Richard Berman's decision came as President Donald Trump has sought to quell discontent from his conservative base of supporters over his administration's decision not to release files of the case. The judge wrote that it would be more logical for the government to directly release the vast amount of information it has collected from its investigation into Epstein than to petition the court to release the more limited grand jury materials, whose secrecy is protected by law. 'The Government's 100,000 pages of Epstein files and materials dwarf the 70 odd pages of Epstein grand jury materials,' Judge Berman wrote. 'The grand jury testimony is merely a hearsay snippet of Jeffrey Epstein's alleged conduct.' The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Mr Trump, a Republican, had campaigned for a second term in 2024 with promises to make public Epstein-related files, and accused Democrats of covering up the truth. But in July, the Justice Department declined to release any more material from its investigation of the case and said a previously touted Epstein client list did not exist, angering Mr Trump's supporters. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore 18 persons nabbed and 82 vapes seized in HSA ops in Raffles Place and Haji Lane Singapore 3 Sengkang Green Primary pupils suspended for bullying classmate, with 1 of them caned: MOE Singapore Woman trapped between train doors: Judge rules SBS Transit '100% responsible' Singapore Religion growing in importance for Singaporeans: IPS study Life Record number of arts patrons in 2024, but overall donation dips to $45.74m Life 'Loss that's irreplaceable': Local film-makers mourn closure of Singapore indie cinema The Projector Singapore Nearly 2 years' jail, caning for man caught with at least 100 sexually explicit videos of children Singapore Grab users in Singapore shocked by fares of over $1,000 due to display glitch Evidence seen and heard by grand juries, which operate behind closed doors to prevent interference in criminal investigations, cannot be released without a judge's approval. In July, Mr Trump instructed Attorney-General Pam Bondi to seek court approval for the release of grand jury material from Epstein's case. The grand jury that indicted Epstein heard from just one witness, an agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Justice Department said in a court filing in July. Epstein died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges. He had pleaded not guilty. His death in jail and his friendships with the wealthy and powerful sparked conspiracy theories that other prominent people were involved in his alleged crimes and that he was murdered. The New York City chief medical examiner determined that Epstein's death was a suicide by hanging. On Aug 11, a different Manhattan-based judge, Paul Engelmayer, denied a similar request by the Justice Department to unseal grand jury testimony and exhibits from the case of Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's longtime girlfriend. Maxwell is serving a 20-year prison sentence following her 2021 conviction for recruiting underage girls for Epstein to abuse. Judge Engelmayer wrote that the public would not learn anything new from the release of materials from Maxwell's grand jury because much of the evidence was made public at her month-long trial four years earlier. The grand jury testimony contained no evidence of others besides Epstein and Maxwell who had sexual contact with minors, Judge Engelmayer wrote. Maxwell had pleaded not guilty. After losing an appeal, she has asked the US Supreme Court to review her case. In July, a Florida judge rejected the administration's request to unseal grand jury records from federal investigations there into Epstein in 2005 and 2007. Epstein served a 13-month sentence after pleading guilty in 2008 to a state-level prostitution charge as part of a deal now widely regarded as too lenient. REUTERS
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Jeffrey Epstein grand jury records to remain sealed, judge rules
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox FILE PHOTO: Judge Richard Berman is seen in this file photo, during a hearing, in a courtroom sketch at Federal Court in New York, U.S., August 27, 2019. REUTERS/Jane Rosenberg/File Photo NEW YORK - A U.S. judge denied on Wednesday the Justice Department's bid to unseal records from the grand jury that indicted the late financier Jeffrey Epstein on sex trafficking charges, saying the material paled in comparison to the trove of records the government has about the case but is not releasing. Manhattan-based U.S. District Judge Richard Berman's decision came as President Donald Trump has sought to quell discontent from his conservative base of supporters over his administration's decision not to release files of the case. The judge wrote that it would be more logical for the government to directly release the vast amount of information it has collected from its investigation into Epstein than to petition the court to release the more limited grand jury materials, whose secrecy is protected by law. "The Government's 100,000 pages of Epstein files and materials dwarf the 70 odd pages of Epstein grand jury materials," Berman wrote. "The grand jury testimony is merely a hearsay snippet of Jeffrey Epstein's alleged conduct." The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Trump, a Republican, had campaigned for a second term in 2024 with promises to make public Epstein-related files, and accused Democrats of covering up the truth. But in July, the Justice Department declined to release any more material from its investigation of the case and said a previously touted Epstein client list did not exist, angering Trump's supporters. Evidence seen and heard by grand juries, which operate behind closed doors to prevent interference in criminal investigations, cannot be released without a judge's approval. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore 18 persons nabbed and 82 vapes seized in HSA ops in Raffles Place and Haji Lane Singapore 3 Sengkang Green Primary pupils suspended for bullying classmate, with 1 of them caned: MOE Singapore Woman trapped between train doors: Judge rules SBS Transit '100% responsible' Singapore Religion growing in importance for Singaporeans: IPS study Life Record number of arts patrons in 2024, but overall donation dips to $45.74m Life 'Loss that's irreplaceable': Local film-makers mourn closure of Singapore indie cinema The Projector Singapore Nearly 2 years' jail, caning for man caught with at least 100 sexually explicit videos of children Singapore Grab users in Singapore shocked by fares of over $1,000 due to display glitch In July, Trump instructed Attorney General Pam Bondi to seek court approval for the release of grand jury material from Epstein's case. The grand jury that indicted Epstein heard from just one witness, an agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Justice Department said in a court filing in July. Epstein died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges. He had pleaded not guilty. His death in jail and his friendships with the wealthy and powerful sparked conspiracy theories that other prominent people were involved in his alleged crimes and that he was murdered. The New York City chief medical examiner determined that Epstein's death was a suicide by hanging. On Aug. 11, a different Manhattan-based judge, Paul Engelmayer, denied a similar request by the Justice Department to unseal grand jury testimony and exhibits from the case of Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's longtime girlfriend. Maxwell is serving a 20-year prison sentence following her 2021 conviction for recruiting underage girls for Epstein to abuse. Engelmayer wrote that the public would not learn anything new from the release of materials from Maxwell's grand jury because much of the evidence was made public at her monthlong trial four years ago. The grand jury testimony contained no evidence of others besides Epstein and Maxwell who had sexual contact with minors, Engelmayer wrote. Maxwell had pleaded not guilty. After losing an appeal, she has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review her case. In July, a Florida judge rejected the administration's request to unseal grand jury records from federal investigations there into Epstein in 2005 and 2007. Epstein served a 13-month sentence after pleading guilty in 2008 to a state-level prostitution charge as part of a deal now widely regarded as too lenient. REUTERS
Straits Times
3 hours ago
- Straits Times
Al Qaeda-linked group says 21 soldiers killed in widescale attacks in Mali
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Al Qaeda-linked militants killed 21 soldiers during coordinated attacks in Mali on Tuesday, according to the SITE Intelligence Group, a U.S.-based non-governmental organization that tracks online reports by Islamist militants. Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) said it captured two soldiers, seized 15 military vehicles and more than 50 weapons during the "widescale" operation. Mali's army declined to provide a toll on Wednesday but said its outposts in Farabougou and Biriki-Were came under "simultaneous attack" early on Tuesday, according to a military statement. JNIM said they had taken control of a military barracks and militia positions in Farabougou on Tuesday and detonated an improvised explosive device against an army vehicle in the south-central Segou region. The army did not respond to a request for comment on that claim. Segou, a strategic hub in south-central Mali, has seen repeated clashes between jihadist groups, government forces and allied militias amid a years-long insurgency that has spread across the arid Sahel region. JNIM is shifting from rural guerrilla tactics to a campaign aimed at controlling territory around urban centres and asserting political dominance in the Sahel. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore 18 persons nabbed and 82 vapes seized in HSA ops in Raffles Place and Haji Lane Singapore 3 Sengkang Green Primary pupils suspended for bullying classmate, with 1 of them caned: MOE Singapore Woman trapped between train doors: Judge rules SBS Transit '100% responsible' Singapore Religion growing in importance for Singaporeans: IPS study Life Record number of arts patrons in 2024, but overall donation dips to $45.74m Life 'Loss that's irreplaceable': Local film-makers mourn closure of Singapore indie cinema The Projector Singapore Nearly 2 years' jail, caning for man caught with at least 100 sexually explicit videos of children Singapore Grab users in Singapore shocked by fares of over $1,000 due to display glitch Mali's military leaders took power after coups in 2020 and 2021, vowing to restore security in a country where militant groups control large areas of the north and centre and stage frequent attacks on the army and civilians. REUTERS
