World Athletics to require cheek swab tests for athletes in female track events
World Athletics has introduced cheek-swab tests to verify the eligibility of athletes competing in the female category. The timeline for implementation is still unknown.
President Sebastian Coe emphasized the importance of protecting the integrity of women’s sports and vowed to defend the female category.
The test will detect the SRY gene, a key determinant of male-typical sex development, through a cheek swab or blood sample.
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World Athletics on Tuesday, March 25, approved the implementation of cheek-swab tests to verify if an athlete is female as part of efforts to maintain the integrity of women’s sports, according to the organization’s president, Sebastian Coe. Coe reaffirmed the organization’s commitment to protecting the female category in athletics.
“It’s important to do it because it maintains everything that we’ve been talking about and particularly recently about –– not just talking about –– the integrity of female women’s sport but actually guaranteeing it. And this, we feel, is a really important way of providing confidence and maintaining absolute focus on integrity of competition.”
Sebastian Coe, World Athletics President
Coe emphasized that pre-clearance testing would be required for athletes who wish to compete in the female category. He described the process as “very straightforward” and emphasized its significance.
“Neither of these are invasive. They are necessary, and they will be done to absolutely international medical standards,” Coe said during a media briefing. “I wouldn’t have set off down this path in 2016, 2017, to protect the female category in sport if I’d been anything other than prepared to take the challenge head-on.”
Cheek-swab test to detect SRY gene
The newly introduced test will look for the SRY gene, which is located on the Y chromosome and plays a crucial role in male-typical sex development.
According to World Athletics officials, the test will be conducted via a cheek swab, with a dry blood sample as a possible alternative. The SRY gene is responsible for producing a protein involved in sex determination, typically associated with male development.
Paris Olympics led to some calls for gender testing
Gender testing has been a contentious issue in sports, with recent controversies surrounding the eligibility of athletes like Imane Khelif of Algeria and Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan, both of whom won gold medals in female events at the Paris Olympics.
Khelif and Yu-ting were accused of failing a gender test administered by the International Boxing Association (IBA), formerly known as the International Boxing Federation. However, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) denounced the IBF’s tests as “not legitimate.”
“The whole process is flawed. From the conception of the test, to how the test was shared with us, to how the tests have become public, is so flawed that it’s impossible to engage with it,” said IOC spokesperson Mark Adams.
In 2023, the IOC stripped the IBA of its role as an Olympic governing body due to its ties to a Russian state energy firm and its way of judging fights.
The topic of transgender women competing in women’s sports featured prominently in Coe’s campaign for the presidency of the IOC. Kirsty Coventry shared his position, who ultimately won the election to succeed Thomas Bach as IOC president.
NCAA bans transgender athletes from women’s sports after executive order
The NCAA has banned transgender student-athletes in a switch-up of its policy. The decision follows an executive order from President Donald Trump.
Around 1,100 schools take part in the NCAA and more than 500,000 athletes.
Until now, the NCAA followed a sport-by-sport approach, working with each sport’s national body.
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In swift action, the NCAA changed its transgender student-athlete participation policy following President Donald Trump’s executive order banning transgender athletes from women and girls’ sports. The NCAA’s policy change is effective immediately and applies to all athletes regardless of previous eligibility reviews.
The president’s executive order allows federal agencies to withhold federal funding from entities that do not abide by Title IX as the Trump administration sees it — that “sex” is the gender someone was assigned at birth.
What was the NCAA’s previous policy?
Until now, the NCAA’s policy, which took effect in 2022, had a sport-by-sport approach. That means transgender participation was determined by the policy of the individual sport’s national governing body.
If a sport did not have a national governing body, that sport’s international federation policy would be the guideline. If there is no international federation policy, the criteria used by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) would be used.
Will IOC criteria change?
The new executive order stipulates the Trump administration will work with sports governing bodies, including the IOC, to ensure his guidance is followed in noneducational settings, as well.
The IOC has allowed transgender athletes to participate at the Olympics since 2004, but it wasn’t until 2021 that the first openly transgender athletes competed in the Summer Games.
Trump bans transgender athletes from women’s sports
President Donald Trump signs an executive order prohibiting transgender women and girls from competing in female sports, claiming the war on women’s sports is over. And the State Department claims Panama is willing to waive fees on American ships using the Panama Canal, despite the Panamanian government saying otherwise. These stories and more highlight your Unbiased Updates for Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025.
Trump bans transgender athletes from women’s, girls’ sports
President Donald Trump followed through on another campaign promise Wednesday, Feb. 5. He signed an executive order banning transgender athletes from participating in girls’ and women’s sports.
“With this executive order, the war on women’s sports is over,” Trump said.
He added, “This will effectively end the attack on female athletes at public K-12 schools and virtually all U.S. colleges and universities. I don’t think we missed anything, but if we do, we’ll make it up very quickly with an order.”
The order rolls back Biden administration guidance on Title IX, a civil rights law that prevents sex-based discrimination in education programs and activities that receive federal funding
“We're putting every school receiving taxpayer dollars on notice that if you let men take over women's sports teams or invade your locker rooms, you will be investigated for violations of Title IX and risk your federal funding.” –President Donald J. Trump 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/MUd6FAetWr
The current measure, dubbed “No Men in Women’s Sports,” is the fourth executive order Trump has signed involving transgender people since taking office just over two weeks ago. Critics said the order addresses a problem that simply is not there.
“First of all, the numbers, they don’t exist,” said activist and former professional cyclist Kristen Worley. “Understand that there’s 0.01% gender variant people living in our society as a whole, so it’s a very tiny, tiny group of people that he’s actually targeting, and certainly the numbers in terms of gender performance are filled with inaccuracies as well.”
However, supporters of the order pointed to a trans swimmer at the University of Pennsylvania and a trans volleyball player at San Jose State as examples of men who transitioned to women and then dominated women’s sports.
The executive order also stipulates that the Trump administration will work with sports governing bodies, including the International Olympic Committee, to ensure that guidance is followed in noneducational settings.
Democratic senators protest Vought’s nomination with overnight speech marathon
Democratic senators held the floor overnight Wednesday into Thursday to protest Russell Vought’s nomination to lead the Office of Management and Budget.
Republicans have the majority in the Senate, so they have consistently confirmed Trump’s nominees, even without Democratic approval. Vought was set to be confirmed for the job Wednesday night, but Democrats vowed to slow the process dramatically.
Democrats have warned about Vought’s ties to Project 2025, a conservative push to reshape the federal government. Trump has denied following its guidelines.
We're holding the Senate floor all night to fight back against Trump’s nomination of Russell Vought.
America saw how bad OMB’s illegal, incompetent funding freeze was.
We want Americans to hear EVERY HOUR how bad the dangers are that he poses to their daily lives as OMB head. pic.twitter.com/ksJ2VG7nJX
Things came to a head after the OMB released a memo last week freezing federal funding. While the memo was rescinded not long after, Democrats said it was a warning sign for how Vought, who at least one Democratic senator has called Trump’s “most dangerous nominee,” would run the office, which plays a key role in enacting the president’s agenda.
Senate Democrats began what they said would be a 30-hour protest Wednesday afternoon. Despite the protest, the full Senate will vote to confirm Vought as budget director Thursday evening.
Vought previously held this position during Trump’s first term. Republican Sen. John Hoeven of North Dakota said he has a good working relationship with Vought and expects it to continue.
Panama denies US claim government vessels can transit canal for free
Hours after the State Department announced that American ships would be allowed to sail through the Panama Canal for free, Panama said that was not true.
In a post on Wednesday, the State Department said Secretary Marco Rubio had agreed with Panamanian leadership to allow the move, saving the federal government millions of dollars a year. Rubio had visited Panama this week.
The Panama Canal Authority said it sets the tolls and other fees for crossing the canal and “has not made any adjustments to them.” The authority added that it is open to dialogue with the U.S.
Before taking office, Trump demanded that Panamanian authorities either lower fees for American ships using the Panama Canal or return its control to the U.S.
‘Sanctuary city’ mayors to testify before House committee
“Sanctuary city” mayors will testify before House lawmakers in an upcoming hearing on immigration policies, according to House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky.
Comer launched a probe into sanctuary policies, which allow a jurisdiction to limit its cooperation with federal immigration enforcement officials when it comes to the Trump crackdown on illegal immigration. Mayors in major cities such as Chicago, Boston and Philadelphia have said they will not help.
This comes as newly confirmed Attorney General Pam Bondi hit the ground running on her first day in office Wednesday, ordering a pause in federal funding from the Justice Department for sanctuary cities. Straight Arrow News reporter Lauren Taylor has the details here.
The mayors of Boston, Chicago, Denver and New York City, among others, will appear before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on March 5 to discuss sanctuary policies.
New bird flu variation found in US dairy cattle
Testers have discovered a second bird flu variation in American dairy cows for the first time.
The Department of Agriculture announced the new strain on Wednesday, Feb. 5. Until recently, all dairy herd detections in the U.S. had been infected with a form of bird flu known as B3.13.
This new version, D1.1, was previously detected only in wild birds and poultry, but has now spread to cows.
It’s also the strain that’s been linked to a deadly human case in Louisiana last year after the victim was exposed to infected birds.
Humans infected with D1.1 have experienced more severe symptoms than those with the previous bird flu strain. However, the CDC said the risk to the general public remains low, and there is no evidence of the spread of D1.1 from human to human.
AI ‘digitally unrolls’ 2,000-year-old scrolls burned in Vesuvius eruption
Using artificial intelligence, X-rays and CT scans, researchers have deciphered some words on an ancient scroll burned by lava from Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D.
The rolled-up papyrus scrolls were found in a mansion in Herculaneum, an ancient town near Pompeii, in the mid-1700s. Researchers attempted to unfurl them for more than two centuries to see what was inside and what they said.
The few scrolls they could open contained philosophical writing in ancient Greek. Others were so severely damaged by the lava that they were illegible — until now.
On Wednesday, specialists at Oxford University in London announced a significant breakthrough. Technicians used a massive machine called a synchrotron to create a powerful X-ray beam that could look inside a fragile scroll without damaging it. The Oxford scholars are now continuing to decipher the text on this scroll.
Olympians say medals from Paris 2024 games deteriorating
Several athletes who competed in the 2024 Paris Olympics reported their medals deteriorating just months after the games ended. The French government minted more than 5,000 medals for the 2024 Olympics, including those awarded at the Paralympics.
However, several Olympians have raised concerns about their medals, reporting that they have become chipped, faded and tarnished.
Some athletes had already questioned the quality of the medals before the closing ceremony.
American skateboarder Nyjah Huston shared a photo of his damaged bronze medal on social media. He remarked it looked as though it had “gone to war and back.”
According to French news outlet La Lettre, more than 100 athletes have requested replacements for their damaged awards.
The French Mint, which produced the medals, said it has taken the issue seriously since the first complaints were made in August and has activated its internal teams to investigate the matter.
A spokesperson for the French Mint stated that while they have not disclosed the exact number of damaged medals, they are collaborating with the 2024 Olympic Organizing Committee to address the problem.
The medals drew attention last year because each contains iron from the Eiffel Tower, giving them a distinctive connection to the host city.
Officials in France have confirmed that replacements for the damaged medals will begin to be sent out in the coming weeks. Identical versions will be provided to the affected athletes.
Australian breakdancer Raygun reveals she is retiring following backlash
As reported on Thursday, Nov. 7, Raygun, the Australian breakdancer, who gained instant fame during the 2024 Olympic Games said she’s retiring from the sport, citing backlash online and beyond. Raygun, whose real name is Rachel Gunn, broke the news on an Australian podcast this week.
She told the hosts that she wouldn’t compete in the Olympics again if given the chance. She said that she still breaks but doesn’t plan to participate competitively.
“I’m not going to compete anymore, no, no,” Gunn said.
Gunn notably failed to score a single point in the Olympic competition. Online reaction to her performance was swift from gifs of Gunn’s dance moves.
In the weeks following her performance in August, the negative criticism turned into a movement. A Change.org petition was even created to get answers about the selection process for breaking during the Summer Games.
Gunn said everything from hate mail to conspiracy theories took all of the fun out of competing in the sport.
Although breaking is not on the schedule for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Gunn said she won’t be breaking competitively anymore. Instead, she will just be doing it for fun and encouraging others to get out and bust a move.
Gunn said she’s kept her head up reading messages of support from fans and blocking out the negativity.
Despite her lack of success in Paris, Gunn represented Australia in the World Championships three times and won the Oceania Breaking Championships last year.
French authorities reveal they foiled 3 terror plots targeting Olympics
The 2024 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games in Paris went on without any major act of terror, and reports on Wednesday, Sept. 11, seem to indicate that is likely due to the work of French intelligence. France’s National Counterterrorism Prosecutor Oliver Christensen has announced that the country’s authorities foiled three terror plots targeting the Games in Paris.
The plots reportedly included plans to strike “Israeli institutions or representatives,” but Christensen said the threats did not directly involve the Israeli Olympic team. Five people were reportedly arrested in connection with the thwarted terror plots, including a minor.
The Games took place as wars in Gaza and Russia’s war in Ukraine continued.
Meanwhile, France went on high security alert months before the Olympic Games, performing 936 house searches so far this year, which is up from 153 in 2023. The country also strengthened its air defenses over Paris with attack helicopters and surveillance aircraft.
France’s interior minister repeatedly warned of threats from Islamic extremists and cyberattacks from Russia or other enemies.
In May, an 18-year-old man from Chechnya was arrested for allegedly planning to attack Olympic soccer events just outside of Paris. He reportedly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group.
French authorities said that the majority of the threats they stopped were from Jihadists, and Christensen cautioned that the Islamic State group is continuing to “spread propaganda” in France.
Chiles had initially scored a 13.666 for fifth place, but after an inquiry, she was bumped to 13.766 and into third place. As the Paris Olympics wrapped up, the Romanian gymnastics federation appealed. The CAS said it found Chiles’ coach, Cecile Landi, had requested the review after the one minute deadline to do so expired.
Over the weekend, the USAG sent Olympic officials what it called time-stamped video evidence that showed Landi requested the inquiry of Chiles’ score within the one minute mark. The organization said Chiles should be able to keep the bronze medal that was awarded to her following the score change.
However, the USAG later released a statement on Monday, Aug. 12, saying the CAS would not reconsider its ruling to strip Chiles of the medal. According to CAS rules, it does not allow for final decisions to be reconsidered despite “conclusive new evidence” being presented.
“We are deeply disappointed by the notification and will continue to pursue every possible avenue and appeal process, including to the Swiss Federal Tribunal, to ensure the just scoring, placement and medal award for Jordan,” USA Gymnastics said.
Elon Musk interviews Donald Trump for 2 hours on X after delay
Elon Musk sats down with former President Donald Trump in an interview on X that lasted two hours. And the impact of an earthquake in Los Angeles is caught on live TV. These stories and more highlight The Morning Rundown for Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024.
Elon Musk interviews Donald Trump for 2 hours on X after delay
Former President Donald Trump sat down with tech billionaire Elon Musk for a conversation that was livestreamed on X Monday, Aug. 12. However, the broadcast began more than half an hour late due to a glitch, which Musk later attributed to “a cyber-attack.”
Despite the rocky start, the conversation went on for over two hours. Trump and Musk delved into topics ranging from immigration and inflation to the assassination attempt on Trump’s life, and some of Trump’s top priorities if he should win the November election.
One idea the former president threw out there was potentially dismantling the Department of Education.
“Well, think of education, we’re ranked at the bottom of every list, 40, 38,” Trump said. “In other words, horrible. And we spend more per pupil, more than anyone in the world. And one of my first acts — and this is where I need an Elon Musk, someone who has strength and smarts — I want to close the Department of Education and move education back to the states.”
The FBI is now investigating attempted hacks into both the Trump and Biden-Harris campaigns. The investigation includes attempted hacks targeting three Biden-Harris campaign staffers and Roger Stone, a former adviser to former President Trump.
Stone told The Washington Post his email had been compromised, but it’s not clear if attempts to hack the Biden campaign were successful. A Harris campaign official said it does not appear to have been hacked.
On Friday, Aug. 9, Microsoft issued a report showing Iranian operatives had been trying to interfere with the 2024 election. Trump’s campaign confirmed over the weekend it appears to have been impacted by those efforts after news outlets were sent hundreds of confidential pages.
White House confirms Biden will speak at DNC
The White House has confirmed President Joe Biden is set to speak at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago. Multiple media outlets are reporting other speakers will include former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
The convention starts Monday, Aug. 19, and will go through Thursday, Aug. 22.
We're a week out from the start of the 2024 @DemConvention and content creators are getting excited to cover the convention from their own unique lens. @6figga_dilla talked to @saramachi at convention HQ last week about this historic moment for the city and the country. pic.twitter.com/oTxj8ro0Jy
Sources told ABC News the current plan is for Biden and Hillary Clinton to speak Monday night, then former President Obama on Tuesday, Aug. 20. On Wednesday, Aug. 21, it’ll be vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and former President Bill Clinton. Finally, Harris is set to address the DNC on Thursday, Aug. 22.
That is a tentative schedule and could still change.
U.S. preps for potential Iranian-backed attack on Israel this week
Security Adviser John Kirby said the U.S. is prepared for “significant” attacks by Iran or its proxies in the Middle East as soon as this week. Kirby said the U.S. has bolstered its forces in the region.
Secretary of Defense Austin has ordered the USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN Carrier Strike Group, equipped with F-35C fighters, to accelerate its transit to the Central Command area of responsibility, adding to the capabilities already provided by the USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT Carrier Strike…
It’s a rare move to publicly announce such military moves; a tactic some say is meant to de-escalate tensions in the region and deter Iran from possibly attacking.
Concerns of an attack come after Iran and Hamas accused Israel of carrying out the assassination of a Hamas leader in Tehran in July.
U.S. troops suffer minor injuries in Syrian drone attack
Defense officials said several U.S. service members suffered minor injuries in a drone attack in Syria on Friday, Aug. 9. The drone targeted a landing zone which hosts U.S. and partner forces in the global coalition to defeat ISIS
U.S. Central Command said it’s still evaluating the damage, but initial assessments show there was minor damage to one set of facilities.
This attack was the second within a week to injure U.S. personnel who are part of the coalition to defeat ISIS.
This latest California quake came almost a week after a magnitude 5.2 quake struck Bakersfield.
Team USA’s Jordan Chiles to lose bronze medal after appeal denied
The latest turn in the Olympic medal controversy involving gymnast Jordan Chiles did not go Team USA’s way. On Monday, Aug. 12, the USA Gymnastics Organization sent Olympic officials what it called time-stamped video evidence that showed Chiles’ coach requested a review of her score within the allotted one minute, meaning Chiles should be able to keep the bronze medal that was awarded to her following a score change.
However, USA Gymnastics released a statement later Monday saying the Court of Arbitration for Sport would not reconsider its ruling to strip Chiles of the medal.
But the twists to this saga may not be over just yet though.
USA Gymnastics said it will continue to “pursue every possible avenue and appeal process” including the Swiss Federal Tribunal to “ensure the just scoring, placement and medal award for Jordan.”
New twist in US gymnast Jordan Chiles’ Olympic medal saga
USA Gymnastics is challenging the ruling of Olympic officials that called for Team USA’s Jordan Chiles to return her bronze medal she won during the individual floor exercise final last week. Chiles was awarded the medal after her coach, Cecile Landi, submitted a review of the judges’ scores.
However, the decision this weekend by the Court of Arbitration for Sport said Landi had asked for the review four seconds after a one-minute deadline to submit such a request had expired, per competition rules. This meant Romania’s Ana Barbosu won the bronze.
But on Sunday, Aug. 11, USA Gymnastics fired back at that ruling, saying it submitted time-stamped video evidence showing the request was made within the one minute mark — 47 seconds after the score was announced, to be exact.
USA Gymnastics has submitted additional evidence to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. pic.twitter.com/GOKymbAtcq
“The time-stamped, video evidence submitted by USA Gymnastics Sunday evening shows Landi first stated her request to file an inquiry at the inquiry table 47 seconds after the score is posted, followed by a second statement 55 seconds after the score was originally posted,” USA Gymnastics’ statement read.
The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee issued a statement of its own in support of Chiles.
“We firmly believe that Jordan rightfully earned the bronze medal, and there were critical errors in both the initial scoring by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) and the subsequent CAS appeal process that need to be addressed,” the USOPC said.
Olympic officials have yet to respond to the latest twist in this gymnastics saga. Previously, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said in a statement it would contact the USOPC regarding the return of Chiles’ bronze and will work with the Romanian Olympic Committee to discuss a reallocation ceremony honoring Barbosu.
On Saturday, Chiles said she was taking a break from social media, posting to Instagram she was “taking this time and removing myself from social media for my mental health, thank you.” Her teammate, Simone Biles, sending a message saying “Sending you so much love Jordan. Keep your chin up ‘Olympic champ’ we love you.”
Biles and Chiles were part of a golden moment together earlier in the games. Team USA took home the gold medal in the women’s gymnastics team final.
Boxers who failed gender tests last year cleared to compete in Paris
Two boxers who were previously disqualified from world championships for failing gender eligibility tests will be allowed to fight in the Olympics. The two will compete in the women’s competition during the Games. The decision sparked backlash on social media.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) confirmed that Algeria’s Imane Khelif and Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yu-Ting will face female opponents in Paris.
The International Boxing Association (IBA) disqualified both athletes during the Women’s World Championships in March 2023. Officials said they failed to meet gender eligibility tests. The IBA said DNA tests found both boxers had X-Y chromosomes instead of X-X. The IBA also said that several athletes posed as women to fight in the female competition.
However, the IBA does not govern Olympic boxing competitions. Instead, a Paris-based boxing group is in charge, and it has more relaxed rules for gender eligibility than the IBA.
“It’s incredibly complex and actually boils down to not just sport by sport, but discipline by discipline,” IOC Spokesperson Mark Adams said. “So people may have an advantage in this discipline and not in this discipline if they’ve been through male puberty or not. That we need to leave to, and this is a conversation we have, to each federation.”
The IOC said the Paris-based group used rules from the 2020 Tokyo Games. Those rules were also in place in Rio eight years ago.
The set of rules, issued in November 2015, state that people who were born female but identify as male can compete in the men’s category without restriction.
However, those born male who identify as female have to meet certain criteria before they can compete. First, the individual must have identified as a woman for at least four years and taken testosterone suppressants for at least one year. Additionally, the testosterone levels have to be below a certain level for the duration of the competition.
Additionally, the athlete has to undergo testing for compliance. If they fail, they face a 12-month suspension from women’s events.
“Rules should be in place for the protection of women in sport and the promotion of the principles of fair competition,” the IOC said in a statement.
Many former athletes took to social media to express their opinion on the IOC’s decision.
“It’s shocking that they were actually allowed to get this far, what is going on?” Barry McGuigan, a former world-champion boxer, wrote on X.
“Imagine training your WHOLE life, getting good enough to earn a spot on the Olympic team, hoping to a win an Olympic medal….then you’re told you have to fight a man,” Riley Gaines, a former collegiate swimmer, said. “That’s the tragic reality for these women.”
Scientists conducted an study that found males who have gone through male puberty have an average punching power that is about 162% greater than females. The study also showed that the least-powerful man was stronger than the most-powerful woman.
Until the 1960s, doctors physically examined women to determine if they were female before they could compete in the Olympics.