Latest news with #USAG
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
USA Gymnastics Considering Major Change Amid Simone Biles-Riley Gaines Feud
USA Gymnastics Considering Major Change Amid Simone Biles-Riley Gaines Feud originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Simone Biles' name is synonymous with USA Gymnastics. But after her very bitter—and very public feud—with Outkick host and former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines over whether or not transgender athletes should be allowed to compete in women's sports, Biles, who's the most-decorated gymnast of all time, has put the gymnastics community in the spotlight. Advertisement Though Biles issued an apology to Gaines for her remarks and seemingly body shaming her, fans on social media still haven't stopped discussing the issue in regard to gymnastics. According to Fox News' Jack Thompson, USA Gymnastics could be making some changes to its eligibility criteria in the wake of the Biles-Gaines debate. 'USA Gymnastics (USAG) could be the next major American sports governing body to change its policies on allowing trans athletes to compete with women,' Thompson wrote. 11-time Olympic medalist Simone Terada-Imagn Images Thompson cited a statement from the organization that noted just last month it had begun the formal steps of implanting such a change. Advertisement 'In May, USAG removed its policy to assess compliance with the current legal landscape,' the organization said in a statement to Fox News. Thompson also pointed out that USAG's previous policy allowed transgender athletes who were biologically male to compete in the women's division, and that in 2020 the organization announced it would 'no longer require trans athletes to undergo sex reassignment, legal gender recognition and hormone therapy in order to compete in the gender category of their choosing. ' USA Fencing has stated its intention to change its policy regarding gender eligibility, and USA Track and Field has changed its gender-eligibility policy from the International Olympic Committee's, which allowed biological males to compete in women's sports, to the World Athletics guidelines, which doesn't. Thompson stated with some of the more prominent organizations adopting new policies, it's possible USAG will have a new one in effect for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Related: Simone Biles Slammed Over 'Hypocritical' Resurfaced Tweet Amid Riley Gaines Feud This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 12, 2025, where it first appeared.
Fox News
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
USA Gymnastics assessing transgender policy after deleting rules on letting males in women's category
USA Gymnastics (USAG) could be the next major American sports governing body to change its policies on allowing trans athletes to compete with women. The organization provided a statement to Fox News Digital addressing why its website pages for its transgender eligibility policies and resources were deleted. "In May, USAG removed its policy to assess compliance with the current legal landscape," the statement said. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Feb. 5 to ban trans athletes from women's sports, and USA Fencing has already faced federal scrutiny over its rules that let males compete with females. USAG's previous policies were highly permissive to biological males who wished to compete in the women's category. One of the deleted webpages was a November 2020 announcement stating that the organization would no longer require trans athletes to undergo sex reassignment, legal gender recognition and hormone therapy in order to compete in the gender category of their choosing. The organization also previously had resources and guidelines for trans athletes on its website, but those pages have also been deleted. USAG was thrust into the spotlight this past weekend after Olympic legend Simone Biles garnered mass backlash for attacking former NCAA swimmer and conservative influencer Riley Gaines. Biles called Gaines "truly sick" and suggested Gaines is the size of a male after Gaines pointed out that a Minnesota high school whose softball team won a state championship Friday with a transgender pitcher, and that Minnesota's high school league disabled comments on an X post of the announcement. Biles has since issued a public apology for her comments against Gaines. Generally, the American public has become more universally opposed to allowing trans athletes to compete in women's sports over the last year. A New York Times/Ipsos survey found the vast majority of Americans, including a majority of Democrats, do not think transgender athletes should be permitted to compete in women's sports. Of the 2,128 people who participated, 79% said biological males who identify as women should not be allowed to participate in women's sports. Of the 1,025 people who identified as Democrats or leaning Democratic, 67% said transgender athletes should not be allowed to compete with women. Other major Team USA sports governing bodies have quietly amended their transgender policies amid rising opposition to trans inclusion in women's and girls' sports. USA Track and Field (USATF) official transgender eligibility policy now references the World Athletics guidelines on its official webpage. USATF previously referenced the International Olympic Committee (IOC)'s policy, as seen in an archive via Wayback Machine. The IOC allows biological males to compete in the women's category, while World Athletics bans any athlete who has undergone male puberty from competing as a woman. USA Fencing announced in April that it is preparing to change its gender-eligibility policy, after a viral protest by women's fencer Stephanie Turner sparked mass backlash and federal intervention by protesting a trans opponent. The organization said it is preparing to amend its current policies that allow biological males to compete with women and girls in the event that it is "forced" to change them. "In the event that USA Fencing is forced to change its current stance in accordance with oversight bodies or federal legislation, the new policy states athletes competing in USA Fencing-sanctioned tournaments must compete according to their biological sex," the announcement read. The proposed updated policy ensures that the women's category "will be open exclusively to athletes of the female sex." The men's category "will be open to all other athletes who are otherwise eligible for competition." Now, USA Gymnastics is getting in on the wave of changes, as Team USA as a whole could have a very different set of rules in time for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics compared to years past. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Associated Press
25-02-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Attorney David Shestokas Calls for DOJ to Enforce Mandatory NVRA Voter Roll Maintenance as Law Requires
/ -- In 2017, Judicial Watch sued Los Angeles County (Case 2:17-cv-08948, Bell, McAndrews & Hiltachk, LLP [email protected]) for failure to follow the National Voter Registration Act's (NVRA) required voter roll maintenance. Los Angeles County was ordered to remove 1,207,613 ineligible voters from its rolls as of February 2023. Fast forward to the November 2024 election: 'Deep Blue' LA suddenly elected a Republican prosecutor. The new Los Angeles County DA, Nathan Hochman, was the 2022 Republican California Attorney General candidate. In 2024 Republican Hochman defeated incumbent Democrat, George Gascon. Proven path to a more secure vote In 2020, Gascon beat two term incumbent, Jackie Lacey with 2,002,865 votes. By 2024, 1.2 million ineligible voters were removed. In the November 2024 election Democrat Gascon received 1.1 million fewer votes than four years earlier. He received 891,264 votes and Republican Hochman won with 1,421,207. Gascon's vote loss from 2020 to 2024 mirrors the consequence of the Judicial Watch lawsuit. 1,207,613 ineligible voters were removed. The progressive prosecutor received 1,111,601 fewer votes. It's hard not to see the connection. The 1993 NVRA, known as 'motor voter', requires state driver license facilities, military recruitment centers and state benefit offices to register voters. County clerks traditionally managed registrations. In addition, Congress required state election authorities to maintain clean voter rolls, including immediate removal of certain registrations: deaths, incapacity judgments, written voter requests and where applicable, felony convictions. NVRA also requires a detailed process to remove non-voters who do not respond to inquiries from election authorities. NVRA provisions allow private enforcement of the law. Private lawsuits by Judicial Watch, political parties and others, have resulted in the removal of more than four million ineligible voters. United Sovereign Americans, is currently pursuing court actions against nine states. I personally filed an NVRA action for the Illinois Conservative Union in 2020. These successes and current lawsuits have occurred despite the many prerequisites and legal hurdles in the NVRA for private enforcement to take place. For private parties, cleaning voter rolls under the NVRA is cumbersome, time consuming and expensive. The Los Angeles County result required over five years of litigation. US AG has the authority, Supreme Court acknowledges the problem Unlike a private party, the US Attorney General has authority to enforce the NVRA without legal obstacles. The US AG also has authority to pursue charges for NVRA violations. The Justice Department website, lists 34 NVRA lawsuits or settlements since 1993, but only four involved failure to maintain voter rolls. The US Supreme Court acknowledges: 'It has been estimated that 24 million voter registrations in the United States—about one in eight—are either invalid or significantly inaccurate.... And about 2.75 million people are said to be registered to vote in more than one State.' HUSTED v. A. PHILIP RANDOLPH INSTITUTE 138 S. Ct. 1833, 201 L. Ed. 2d 141 (2018) Justice Alito's Husted opinion cited 24 million registration problems. United Sovereign Americans has completed detailed analysis of 21 states voter rolls and voting histories from the 2022 election. That analysis discovered 29 million apparently ineligible registrations casting 10 million votes. Centralized mail in ballot processing controlled by a few people, provides the unscrupulous an opportunity to take advantage of inaccurate rolls, defeating the consent of the governed. Shestokas explains, 'In 2016, the Republican National Lawyers Association (RNLA) deployed me to Broward County, FL monitoring the Trump and Rubio elections. I discovered tens of thousands of mail in ballots illegally opened in a locked room without the required public observation. Ultimately, the illegal process was suspended and a judge was stationed there to insure ballot processing compliance.' 'During the 2020 presidential election, RNLA sent me to Allegheny County, PA. I organized 70 observers for the mail in processing facility. We were corralled into a small space in a 40,000 square foot warehouse and unable to conduct meaningful observation. We did note ballot envelopes were opened before arrival. Additionally, I and three other lawyers, based upon whistleblower information, found vacant and condemned apartment buildings from which 'registered voters' 'sent in' mail in ballots.' 'In 2024 I worked with Bob Fioretti, Republican candidate for Cook County State's Attorney. During early voting, I spent three days at the county processing facility. Hundreds of thousands of ballots were processed without effective oversight. I was the only outside person observing, besides hypothetical 'Republican' election judges,' says Shestokas. U.S. Attorneys must enforce NVRA, only the Justice Department can address Jerry Stocks, an Illinois attorney experienced in election law, including five RNLA deployments, agrees it's a scandal. Stocks contends U.S. Attorneys must enforce the NVRA as part of restoring confidence in our elections. Since January 20th, 2025, President Trump and his team have been busy: Panama, Greenland, USAID, DOGE, Rubio, Hegseth, Bondi, Patel, RFK Jr., Musk, female sports, DEI, Gaza, J6 pardons, Canada, Mexico, ICE, Fort Knox, border security, IRS, paper straws, dishwashers and more. To secure the benefits of President Trump's victory and team, long term, the security of elections is critical. The election of a Republican in Los Angeles County demonstrates clean voter rolls make a difference in electoral outcomes. Private citizens have limited resources to enforce NVRA, challenging the states' taxpayer funded lawyers. United Sovereign America data shows it's a national issue and only the Justice Department has the resources to address it. Urgency for Illinois and beyond In many states, the election process for 2026 begins soon, and voter registrations impact that process throughout. Illinois candidate petitions to appear on the 2026 ballot begin circulation in September. Registered voters must sign such petitions in Illinois and across the country. The ramifications are clear: Clean voter rolls impact who gets on the ballot. Many proposals promise to improve election integrity: single day voting, only paper ballots, hand counts, etc. All require changes in current law. The requirement to clean our voter rolls IS THE LAW. It must be enforced. David Shestokas +1 312-451-5550 X LinkedIn Instagram Legal Disclaimer:
