Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

NCAA Upgrades Weight Room After Female Player Calls Out Sexist Disparity Between Tournaments

NCAA Upgrades Weight Room After Female Player Calls Out Sexist Disparity Between Tournaments
@sedonaprince_/Twitter

A viral video showing the disparity between male and female exercise facilities provided by the NCAA during the March Madness basketball tournaments prompted the collegiate sports organization to apologize and make some changes.

Sedona Prince, a basketball player for The University of Oregon, previously posted a video exposing the contrast between the well-equipped men's facilities in Indianapolis and the women's weight room that only had a single stand for lightweights at the San Antonio tournament facilities.


"If you aren't upset about this problem, then you're a part of it," said Prince in the video, which you can see here.

Prince added March was also about more than just basketball.

Her post calling out the NCAA and their excuse it was an "available space" issue received some high profile attention on social media.

@SheaSerrano/Twitter



It also brought to light a number of other inequities.



After the video prompted online backlash for the scarcity of equipment in the women's basketball tournament's weight room, the NCAA responded by providing an upgrade with benches, more free weights, racks and cardio equipment.

"Social media is powerful," tweeted Prince, adding, "Thank you for all of y'all's support."

The student-athlete's latest video showed the vast improvement to the facilities and the positive reaction from her teammates upon discovering the equipment upgrade on Saturday morning.

Prince exclaimed in the video:

"Guess what, guys? We got a weight room! Thank you, NCAA, for listening to us. We appreciate y'all, for real."

The controversy started when Ali Kershner, a coach at Stanford, first shared the photos showing a discrepancy with the workout equipment provided for the men and women teams.

The photo below showed the women's weight room—a single rack of lightweights and a table in an otherwise empty and underutilized space.

@alikershnier/Twitter

And this photo was from the men's weight room which was filled with squat racks, benches, extended-weight dumbbells and other equipment.

@alikershnier/Twitter

The NCAA's Vice President of women's basketball, Lynn Holzman, issued a statement saying the NCAA acknowledged "that some of the amenities teams would typically have access to have not been as available inside the controlled environment."

Holzman continued:

"In part, this is due to the limited space and the original plan was to expand the workout area once additional space was available later in the tournament."
"However, we want to be responsive to the needs of our participating teams, and we are actively working to enhance existing resources at practice courts, including additional weight training equipment."

But the VP's excuse, which did not include a formal apology, did not sit well with Prince, which led to her viral post on March 18.

On Friday, NCAA President Mark Emmert apologized to the women's teams.

"This is not something that should have happened and, should we ever conduct a tournament like this again, will never happen again," said Emmert.

Prince followed up her tweet of appreciation with gratitude.

Social media users praised Prince for leading the charge but also commented there still needs to be progress for the treatment of female athletes.







The reason why the NCAA initially skimped on providing women players gym equipment remains questionable.


Twitter user @RichDevall argued:

"Whether they bring in less money or not is a nonsense argument, they have a $50m a year TV deal for this tournament, last time I checked that is just about enough to set up a proper weight room without being shamed into it."

More from Trending

David Justice and Halle Berry
Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images; All The Smoke

Halle Berry's Ex Is Getting Slammed After Revealing Overtly Sexist Reason He Left Her

Halle Berry's marriage to former Major League Baseball player David Justice may have ended nearly 30 years ago, but she still seems to be on Justice's mind.

And fans are not liking anything he has to say about it.

Keep ReadingShow less
Yassamin Ansari; Screenshot of Kellyanne Conway
Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images; Fox News

Dem Rep. Epically Shuts Down Kellyanne Conway's Claim Sydney Sweeney Ad Is Causing Liberal 'Panic'

Actor Sydney Sweeney recently faced backlash over her American Eagle ad campaign titled “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans.” The campaign plays on the words “jeans” and “genes,” which some critics claim alludes to eugenics—a theory widely discredited as scientifically inaccurate and ethically dangerous.

According to former presidential counselor Kellyanne Conway—who gave us the term "alternative facts"—the campaign has sparked "panic on the left."

Keep ReadingShow less
Lisa Kudrow in 'Death to 2020'
Netflix

Lisa Kudrow's Portrayal Of A MAGA Spokesperson Resurfaces—And It's Eerily Accurate

Actor Lisa Kudrow has gone viral after her performance in the Netflix mockumentary Death to 2020 as a truth-denying spokesperson for President Donald Trump went viral—prompting many to point out that her portrayal is still spot on.

The film, from the minds of Black Mirror creators Charlie Brooker and Annabel Jones, centers on a group of fictional characters reflecting on major U.S. and U.K. events of 2020, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the U.S. presidential election.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Molly Martinez
RSBN

White House Reporter Reacts After Video Glitch Sparks Conspiracy Theory That She's A 'Lizard Person'

White House reporter Molly Martinez responded after a White House livestream glitched and caused her eyes to look completely white for a split-second—prompting conspiracy theorists to go wild and claim she is a "lizard person" who is secretly controlling the government.

Martinez, a Washington-based journalist for local TV chain Gray Television, appeared on camera June 19 in the White House press room, smiling at a friend. A glitch in the original footage made her eyes look entirely white—something conspiracy theorists seized on as “evidence” she’s a lizard person.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Ben Ferguson and Abby Philip
CNN

Right-Wing Podcaster Blasted After Making Absurd Claim About Trump And Crime Rates In 2024

Conservative podcaster Ben Ferguson left hs fellow CNN panelists stunned after he made the bizarre claim that falling crime rates in 2024 were due to President Donald Trump's policies—even though Trump didn't begin his second term until January 2025.

Ferguson spoke after Trump—who presented fake crime statistics—announced his decision to federalize police in Washington, D.C., and deploy the National Guard in an effort to fight crime.

Keep ReadingShow less