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Liz Cambage threatens Olympics boycott over Australian photoshoots

@ecambage

Australian basketball star and Las Vegas Aces center Liz Cambage is threatening to boycott the Olympics in Tokyo this summer.

Cambage’s comments came in response to a promotional photoshoot featuring Australian Olympians and Paralympians that didn’t include any athletes of color.

“HOW AM I MEANT TO REPRESENT A COUNTRY THAT DOESN’T EVEN REPRESENT ME,” she wrote below the photo, adding a #whitewashedaustralia hashtag.

“y’all really do anything to remove POCs from the forefront when it’s black athletes leading the pack,” she added. “until I see y’all doin more @ausolympicteam imma sit this one out.”

She also took aim at a photo of Australian athletes posing in the country’s Olympic uniforms. In the photo, only one POC is shown.

The Australian Olympic Committee acknowledged Cambage’s point in a statement.

“The athletes made available to Jockey could and should have better reflected the rich diversity of athletes who represent Australia at the Olympic Games,” the statement read. “The AOC does however have a very proud history of celebrating and promoting diversity in all its forms. From Indigenous reconciliation, people of colour, gender equality and all forms of diversity, the AOC is rightly proud of its record.

“We proudly defend our track record on diversity and there will be further photoshoots that reflect our broad diversity of athletes.”

Cambage then took to her Instagram stories to continue to speak out against the advertisements and call out the AOC’s response.

“You can try and twist my words however you want, it’s not going to work,” Cambage said. “Words don’t mean anything to me. Action means something to me.

“The whitewashing is sad. Your black athletes lead you everywhere. Indigenous athletes are some of the best athletes we have and y’all don’t use them at all,” she continued.

“We have a diversity issue. We have an inclusion issue and we have a visibility issue for kids growing up who don’t see anyone that looks like them in magazines, on TV, on the news anywhere.”

This isn’t the first time Cambage has called out her native Australia in regard to race relations. Back in June 2020, Cambage took issue with Australians posting in support of Black Lives Matter following the death of George Floyd, for which former officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of second- and third-degree murder last month.

“Check out of America, Australia,” she said in her Instagram stories. “We have s— we need to sort right here. We have blood on our hands, we have blood on our hands and we need to fix it.”

How dare people say Black Lives Matter,” she continued, “when we have the darkest, most twisted, most disgusting past when it comes to Indigenous Australians and the treatment of Indigenous Australians.

“How dare you focus your attention on America.”

Former Australian women’s basketball coach Tom Maher, who coached the team to its first two Olympic medals in 1996 and 2000, did not agree with Cambage’s sentiments about the photos.

“It is inappropriate to make such a big deal out of pretty much nothing,” Maher said, per the Australian. “If I was coach, I wouldn’t entertain any threats at all. If she wants to come, she can come, but if she told me she was going to boycott, I’d say, ‘Good luck, see you later.'”

As for those who were suggesting Cambage was just jealous that she wasn’t included in the Jockey shoot?

“I’m a bit busy with Savage X Fenty, if you haven’t noticed,” Cambage said.

USC’s Aaliyah Gayles Opens Up About Her Journey Back to Basketball

USC Basketball - Aaliyah Gayles

As part of our 1-v-1 video series, USC’s India Otto sat down to interview her teammate Aaliyah Gayles. Here are five things to know from our conversation with the redshirt freshman guard from Las Vegas.

#1 Aaliyah suffered from a near-death act of violence in 2022.

The incident taught her a lot about herself and the support around her. “[USC] Coach Lindsay [Gottlieb] was one of the first people to fly out there and come see me. That means a lot to me off the court.” 

#2 Her favorite USC memory is when she surprised her teammates after getting out of the hospital.

She left her walker at the door to show she was on the road to returning to the court. “That was my favorite memory because it was family. It was my first time being able to walk to you guys and see you practice.”

#3 There's a reason she wears #3.

#3 was her grandpa’s favorite number and a golden number in her life. Plus, AG3 has a nice ring to it. 

#4 She has a list of basketball GOAT’s:

Candace Parker, Magic Johnson, Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, and Cason Wallace.

#5 There have been many celebrity appearances at USC’s games over the years, especially this season.

Aaliyah’s favorites include Will Ferrell, Kehlani, and Saweetie. And she hopes Lil Durk will come to watch a game soon.

Watch the full conversation on the Just Women’s Sports YouTube channel.

Gotham, USWNT forward Midge Purce out with ACL tear

(Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports)

Midge Purce announced on Wednesday that she has torn her ACL. 

The Gotham FC and USWNT forward went down with the injury on Sunday during Gotham’s 1-0 win after tweaking it earlier in the game. Gotham coach Juan Carlos Amorós did not have any immediate updates following the match, with further evaluation revealing the tear. 

“It’s a reality I’m still struggling with and has left me with not too much to say,” Purce wrote in a statement on social media. “I’m heartbroken to no longer be available for my season with Gotham FC or for Olympic selection with the USWNT – know I’m rooting for you both all year long. 

“Though you may not see it, I’ll be doing everything I can to get back on the field.”

Purce is just the latest women's soccer star to tear her ACL, and joins USWNT teammate Mia Fishel in having torn her ACL in the last couple of months. Other notable players include Catarina Macario and Christen Press, with Macario only just returning to the USWNT lineup after tearing hers in 2022. 

International stars such as Alexia Putellas, Beth Mead, Vivianne Miedema and Leah Williamson have also suffered ACL tears. 

Purce’s injury caused Amorós to call out the international schedule, which has been a growing point of concern as more players fall victim to injuries and the playing schedule becomes more packed. Kansas City’s Debinha suffered a hamstring injury in the team’s opening game, while both Lynn Williams and Rose Lavelle have yet to play for Gotham due to injuries picked up during the W Gold Cup. 

“We lost Midge during the game which for me is a bittersweet flavor,” Amorós told reporters after Sunday’s game. “By the way, it’s another player that came from the Gold Cup. Last week, it was Debinha. We are paying the consequences of a tournament that shouldn’t have happened.”

“We’re talking about protecting the players, [who shouldn’t] go to play an international competition after one week of preseason,” Amorós continued. “We’ve seen the consequences now. We’ve got Rose, Lynn, last week it was Debinha in Kansas [City] and now we have Midge. From my experience, the clubs are going to keep paying for that competition."

In her statement, Purce said that “so many friends, teammates and even players I’ve only ever competed against” reached out to offer support. 

“I am so blessed,” she wrote. “Your messages have meant so much to me throughout this process, you have consoled what, for a moment, felt inconsolable. Thank you for reminding me that our football world is not only full with incredibly talent but also, incredible kindness.”

Lauren Jackson included on Australia Olympics roster

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - OCTOBER 01: Lauren Jackson of Australia celebrates with team mates after playing her final Opals game during the 2022 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 3rd place match between Canada and Australia at Sydney Superdome, on October 01, 2022, in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)

Lauren Jackson has come out of retirement once again to compete for a spot on Australia’s Olympic roster. 

Jackson was included on the 26-player roster named by coach Sandy Brondello on Tuesday that will take part in training camps, tours and games in the lead-up to the Paris Olympics. The roster will eventually be whittled down to just 12 players selected from the 26 named on Tuesday.

Jackson helped Australia qualify for the Olympics with a win over Germany in February. After that, she announced her retirement, revealing that she struggled to spend so much time away from her two young children. 

The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reported that Jackson and the basketball federation had come to an agreement in which they would help cover costs for her children to travel with the team for training camps and the Olympics. 

She’s largely expected to make the Opals’ Olympic roster. 

"It's always an exciting time to announce an Olympic squad and I congratulate all the athletes," Opals coach Sandy Brondello said. "They all know what it means to play for Australia and they all want the opportunity to represent their country at an Olympics. Our squad is full of exceptional talent and they will make the decision to pick a final 12 very difficult."

At the 2022 FIBA World Cup, Jackson helped Australia win a bronze medal with 30 points against Canada. She had previously retired in 2016 due to knee injuries, but slowly made a return in a domestic Australian league the last few years.

Jackson has won four Olympic medals, including three consecutive silver medals starting with Sydney in 2000 when she was a teenager. 

First two rounds of NCAA tournament boast record attendance, viewership

(David K Purdy/Getty Images)

The first two rounds of the women’s NCAA tournament broke attendance and viewership records set just last year – and it wasn’t even close. 

The NCAA announced on Tuesday that attendance for the first two rounds of the tournament was more than 292,000 – up from last year’s record, when almost 232,000 fans attended the first two rounds.

Among the host sites, Iowa had the biggest crowds with nearly 29,000 fans packing Carver-Hawkeye Arena in the first and second rounds. 

"We expected the historic success and quality of play and high level of competition from the regular season would carry through into March Madness. Our championship is again delivering," NCAA vice president of women's basketball Lynn Holzman said in a statement. "Record crowds, ratings, incredible performances and evolving storylines will continue to make the next two weeks a must-see for fans across the world."

And for those that couldn’t attend the sold-out Iowa games, they watched on television. Monday’s matchup between Iowa and West Virginia drew 4.9 million viewers, setting a record for a women’s D-I tournament game prior to the Final Four. 

It is also the third most watched tournament game in the last 20 years, behind last year’s national championship between LSU and Iowa (9.92 million) and Iowa’s Final Four win over South Carolina (5.6 million).

Iowa’s game against Holy Cross in the first round drew 3.23 million viewers. 

But it wasn’t just Iowa drawing big viewership. ESPN’s five games on Monday averaged 2.25 million viewers. UConn and Syracuse drew 2.05 million viewers while LSU and Middle Tennessee on ABC drew 2.01 million viewers on Sunday. 

The full, 16-game slate for the second round averaged 1.4 million viewers – a 121% increase from last year and the highest average ever for the second round.

The full tournament so far is averaging 812,000 viewers per game, a 108% increase from last year.

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