Latest news with #OlympicandParalympicCommittee
The South African
4 days ago
- Sport
- The South African
SASCOC announces SA flag bearers for 2025 World Games
Team SA's participation at the World Games in Chengdu, officially gets under way on Thursday in the south-western Chinese city which is home to 20 million people. South Africa will be one of over a hundred nations parading at the opening ceremony, with archer Hendre Verhoef and orienteering's Sarah Wimberley being given the honour of carrying the country's flag on such a big stage. Verhoef, 17, and Wimberley, 22, are part of Team SA's representation of 20 athletes across eight different sports. These are the 12th The World Games, a multi-code event for several sports and disciplines that are not in the Olympic Games programme, with the event taking place every four years. This is South Africa ninth successive participation at The World Games, having accumulated 20 medals from their previous eight appearances. This year's edition of The World Games is being held from 7 to 17 August. Both Verhoef and Wimberley are ranked No 1 in their disciplines in South Africa and both have represented the country previously on the international stage. Verhoef will be wearing green and gold for the eighth time, while Wimberley has already participated in two Junior World Orienteering Championships and two World Orienteering Championships. In congratulating both Team SA athletes on their appointment as flag bearers at the opening ceremony, the president of the South African Sports Confederation, Olympic and Paralympic Committee (SASCOC), Barry Hendricks, offered words of encouragement to the pair. 'This will become a life memory for both of you. It is indeed an honour for you to represent your country on the international stage, but carrying the flag adds to the enormity of the achievement. It's important that you soak up the atmosphere and carry the energy of the ceremony into your competition. 'There is a huge audience watching The World Games and you have done all the hard work in earning your Team SA colours. Enjoy the moment and go out there and do your best on this big international stage,' he added. Verhoef and Septimus Cilliers get Team SA's campaign started when they take part in the men's target compound qualification, with the knockout stages beginning on Friday. ARCHERY (3) Men: Hendre Verhoef, Septimus Cilliers Women: Jeanine Van Kradenburg Management: Gerda Roux CANOEING (2) Men: Hamish Lovemore Women: Saskia Hockly Management: Nkosi Mzolo KICKBOXING (5) Men: Ahmad Mahomed, Matthew Gething, Muhammad Mia Women: Leanne Van der Mescht, Saentone Louw Management: Aslam Mahomed, Shabnum Mia MUAYTHAI (1) Men: Damian Collins Managemet: Brett Clarke ORIENTEERING (1) Women: Sarah Wimberley Management: Garry Morrison POWERLIFTING (2) Men: Harold Pietersen Women: Megan Faul Management: Andrew Ludick, Rodney Anthony SPORT CLIMBING (4) Men: Joshua Bruyns, John-David Muller Women: Aniya Holder, Tegwen Oates Management: Dean Bruyns SQUASH (2) Men: Dewald van Niekerk Women: Hayley Ward Management: Jean-Pierre Brits Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
USA Today
22-07-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Attorneys general from 28 states urge NCAA to erase transgender athlete records
Attorneys general from 28 states sent a letter to the NCAA, urging the organization to wipe out records, awards, titles and any other recognitions transgender athletes received in women's sports. The letter, spearheaded by Mississippi attorney general Lynn Fitch, was sent on Tuesday, July 22, co-signed by other Republican attorneys general. Fitch said in a statement the letter urges the NCAA to "restore to female athletes the records, titles, awards, and recognitions they earned but were denied because of policies that allowed biological males to compete in female categories." "Since taking office in January, President Trump has made restoring fairness to women athletes a priority. While we appreciate the steps the NCAA has taken since then, there is far more the NCAA can do for the women athletes that have competed and continue to compete in your events," the letter reads. The letter comes as the Trump Administration has targeted removing transgender athletes from competing in women's sports, and threatening schools that resist. On Feb. 5, less than a month into his presidency, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that barred transgender women and girls from playing in school sports, and schools that don't comply would be cut off of federal funding. The NCAA altered its policy on transgender athletes as a result. Previously, the policy used a sport-by-sport approach that "preserves opportunity for transgender student-athletes while balancing fairness, inclusion and safety for all who compete." At the time, it aligned with decisions by United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, as well as International Olympic Committee. But one day after Trump's executive order, the NCAA changed course. Now, only student-athletes assigned female at birth can compete in women's sports. The policy was "effective immediately and applies to all student-athletes regardless of previous eligibility reviews under the NCAA's prior transgender participation policy." Since the executive order, there have been several legal threats against states for allowing transgender athletes from participating in women's sports, notably in Maine and in California. It also led to a notable Title IX investigation into the University of Pennsylvania surrounding former swimmer Lia Thomas, who became the first openly transgender athlete to win a NCAA Division I title. In March, the federal government suspended roughly $175 million in contracts to Penn for allowing Thomas to compete. On July 1, the university reached an agreement with the U.S. Department of Education to prohibit transgender athletes from competing in women's sports and strip Thomas' records. While Thomas' records were removed at Penn, it didn't impact her NCAA championship records. Thomas won the women's 500-yard freestyle event in 2022, and she tied for fifth in the women's 200-yard freestyle and eighth in the 100-yard freestyle. "The University of Pennsylvania took an important public step recently, affirming that it will comply with Title IX and President Trump's executive orders," the letter states. "All colleges and universities should follow suit, as should the NCAA." In a statement to USA TODAY Sports, the NCAA did not address whether it would erase transgender athlete records. 'The NCAA's transgender participation policy aligns with the Trump Administration's order and male practice players have been common practice in women's college athletics for decades," the NCAA said. NCAA President Charlie Baker told a Senate panel in December there are less than 10 transgender athletes in the NCAA, making up a small percentage of the roughly 510,000 men and women who compete in the organization.
NBC Sports
09-07-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
MORE THAN 100 HOURS OF LIVE COVERAGE OF 2025 WORLD AQUATICS CHAMPIONSHIPS BEGIN THIS FRIDAY EXCLUSIVELY ON PEACOCK
Live Streaming Coverage of Swimming, Diving, Water Polo, Open Water Swimming, and Artistic Swimming from Singapore Presented July 11-Aug. 3, Exclusively on Peacock U.S. Women's and Men's Water Polo Open Their Campaigns on Friday at 12:10 a.m. ET and 10:35 p.m. ET, Respectively Katie Ledecky, Leon Marchand, and Torri Huske Headline Swimming Action Beginning July 26 Additional Coverage, including Preliminaries, Presented Live on Team USA TV STAMFORD, Conn. – July 9, 2025 –More than 100 hours of live coverage of the 2025 World Aquatics Championships from Singapore will stream exclusively on Peacock beginning this Friday, July 11 at 12:10 a.m. ET. All finals in all disciplines across swimming, diving, water polo, open water swimming, and artistic swimming will be presented live on Peacock. From July 11 through Aug. 3, Peacock will stream over 100 hours of live coverage featuring many of the top U.S. Olympic medalists from Paris competing against elite international fields in swimming, diving, water polo, artistic swimming, and open water swimming. This will be the first time that Singapore has hosted this event. Live coverage begins this Friday with U.S. women's and men's water polo at 12:10 a.m. ET and 10:35 p.m. ET, respectively, and with open water swimming beginning Monday at 9 p.m. ET with the women's 10km final. Team USA TV will present preliminaries and select semi-finals action from the artistic swimming and diving competitions. Team USA TV is a free ad-supported TV channel, launched in partnership by the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, NBCUniversal, and FAST Studios. Team USA TV brings fans the incredible stories of Team USA athletes and their journey to represent Team USA at the Olympic and Paralympic Games and is available now on Peacock, Roku TV, Amazon Freevee, LG Channels, and Tablo. For more information, click here. The U.S. men's water polo team earned the bronze medal at the Paris Olympics, their first trip to the podium since 2008, while the women finished in fourth place. The U.S. men are currently ranked sixth in World Aquatics' world rankings, while the women are third. All U.S. water polo matches will be presented live on Peacock. The U.S. is sending an impressive contingent of athletes to Singapore for artistic swimming and open water swimming, with 2024 Paris Olympic team silver medalists Anita Alvarez and Dani Ramirez and Paris Olympic 4x200m freestyle silver medalist Claire Weinstein, who recently won the 5km at the U.S. National Open Water Championships, all expected to compete. Olympic gold medalists Katie Ledecky, Leon Marchand, and Torri Huske headline swimming coverage beginning Saturday, July 26, live on Peacock. Additional details on the swimming portion of the World Aquatics Championships will be released closer to the start of competition. NBC Sports' Coverage Schedule, Friday, July 11 – Saturday, Aug. 9 (all times ET) *Encore presentation --NBC SPORTS--
USA Today
02-07-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Lia Thomas records erasure illustrates NCAA transgender policy change
The federal investigation into the University of Pennsylvania surrounding transgender athletes reached a resolution that will wipe out the school records of Lia Thomas. The U.S. Department of Education announced the resolution on July 1, stating the university will comply with Title IX after it allowed Thomas, a transgender athlete, to be part of the women's swimming team. Now, the university must not allow transgender athletes to compete in female athletic programs, in addition to erasing Thomas' achievements. The agreement comes as President Donald Trump has made it a point of his presidency to ban transgender athletes from competing female sports. He's passed executive orders and threatened legal action regarding the issue, and it's resulted in changes to college sports. Did NCAA allow transgender athletes in women's sports? Yes. Thomas began transitioning in 2019 with hormone replacement therapy and followed the then-established NCAA and Ivy League rules. In 2022, the NCAA updated its transgender athlete policy. The update took a sport-by-sport approach that "preserves opportunity for transgender student-athletes while balancing fairness, inclusion and safety for all who compete." At the time, it aligned with decisions by United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, as well as International Olympic Committee. Under the policy, at the start of the 2022-23 academic year sports calendar, transgender student-athletes had to document sport-specific testosterone levels at the beginning of their season, six months after the first and four weeks before championship selections. Thomas won the NCAA Division I title in the women's 500-yard freestyle event in the spring of 2022 before the policy went into place. How Trump Administration impacted transgender athletes Trump had emphasized during his president campaign his goal of blocking transgender athletes from competing in women's sports. On Feb. 5, less than a month into his presidency, Trump signed an executive order that bars transgender women and girls from playing on school sports, and it would cut off federal money for schools that don't comply. The executive order directs the Department of Education to pursue "enforcement actions" under Title IX, the federal law prohibiting discrimination based on sex at educational institutions that receive federal funding. In April, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced legal action against Maine for refusing to ban transgender athletes from participating in women's sports. In June, Trump threatened fines in California and the Justice Department threatened to sue the state's public high schools after a transgender athlete was allowed to compete and won two medals at the track and field state championship. Did NCAA transgender athlete policy change? Yes. One day after Trump's executive order, the NCAA changed it's policy to only allow student-athletes assigned female at birth could compete in women's sports. The policy was "effective immediately and applies to all student-athletes regardless of previous eligibility reviews under the NCAA's prior transgender participation policy." The updated policy states a student-athlete assigned female at birth "who has begun hormone therapy' may not compete on a women's team, and if they participated in any NCAA competition, the team would not be eligible for NCAA championships. The organization did state individual schools have the autonomy to determine athletic participation on their campus. 'We strongly believe that clear, consistent, and uniform eligibility standards would best serve today's student-athletes instead of a patchwork of conflicting state laws and court decisions. To that end, President Trump's order provides a clear, national standard," NCAA President Charlie Baker said in a statement. How many transgender athletes are in the NCAA? Less than 10, according to what Baker told a Senate panel in December. There are about 510,000 men and women who compete in the NCAA. The number reflects a similar percentage to how many transgender athletes compete in sports, starting at youth sports. According to the UCLA Williams Institute, transgender youth make up only 1.4% of American teenagers. A 2017 study of 17,000 young people found that about 1 in 10 transgender boys said they played sports, and it is roughly the same figure for transgender girls. Lia Thomas records: What happens to them? What happens to Thomas' NCAA records is unclear. The NCAA did not respond to a request for comment. Thomas won the women's 500-yard freestyle event in 2022, and she tied for fifth in the women's 200-yard freestyle and eighth in the 100-yard freestyle. However, Thomas' records at Penn will be erased. She currently holds the records for:
Yahoo
23-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Caitlin Clark's Team USA Snub Controversy Resurfaces With New Statement
Caitlin Clark's Team USA Snub Controversy Resurfaces With New Statement originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Caitlin Clark's rookie season in the WNBA featured several highly-publicized storylines, including her omission from Team USA's Olympic basketball roster. Advertisement Despite her rising superstardom and elite on-court production, Clark was left off the Olympic roster that ultimately went on to win gold at the 2024 Paris games. The decision to leave Clark off the team sparked some serious controversy around the basketball world. USA Today writer Christine Brennan even accused Team USA coach Cheryl Reeve of "stunningly bad behavior" regarding Clark's consideration in the selection process. Before the 2024 WNBA season, Reeve publicly criticized the league for only advertising Clark's preseason debut with the Indiana Fever. These social media posts came out during the Olympic selection process. Now a year later, this controversy is resurfacing. Advertisement Earlier this week, Brennan doubled down on her criticism of Reeve with comments on "The Adam Gold Show." 'How on earth is that okay with the Olympic and Paralympic Committee and USA basketball, that its coach is actively tweeting and going on social media about someone who is in the selection pool?' Brennan asked. A few days later, Reeve fired back with a response on "Golic & Golic." 'What she wrote is fiction. And if she were paying attention, one of the things I have done for years is hold the league accountable for their missteps, mishaps, their lack of representation of all teams," Reeve said. Advertisement "So that particular situation had nothing to do with Caitlin Clark,' she continued. 'It had everything to do with a WNBA social media post that promoted one preseason game and not all preseason games. And so I simply said that, by the way, the Minnesota Lynx are playing the Chicago Sky." Team WNBA guard Caitlin Clark (22) alongside USA Women's National Team head coach Cheryl Reeve during the 2024 WNBA All Star Game at Footprint Center.© Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images Reeve recognized that she's the "villain" in Brennan's story. 'If Christine Brennan were being thorough and a legitimate reporter in this situation, she would have gotten full context," the Minnesota Lynx coach concluded. "But it didn't fit the narrative. Christine Brennan likes to have a villain in her storytelling. I am Christine Brennan's villain, that's the sword she's going to die on. Advertisement "It's a fiction, the stuff that she has written about me and my interest in Caitlin Clark being on or off the team." Related: WNBA Fans React to Caitlin Clark's Historic Achievement on Sunday This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 23, 2025, where it first appeared.
