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Stephanie Gilmore on Gender Equality in Surfing: “Build It and They Will Come”

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In September 2018, the World Surf League proudly announced that it would be awarding equal prize money to male and female surfers at all of its events moving forward. A few months later, Stephanie Gilmore earned her seventh World Title in the sport, tying her with Layne Beachley for the most women’s World Titles ever. Given her iconic status in the sport at the time of the equal pay announcement, she became a prominent face in the fight for pay equity.

Though Gilmore had been vocally calling for this change, she deflects ample credit to her predecessors like Beachley who fought for years for the right to compete against an entrenched sexism in surfing culture.

In a recent conversation on the Just Women’s Sports podcast with host Kelley O’Hara, who herself knows something about the fight for equal pay, Gilmore explains why she’s so proud of her “rebel” sport while discussing how she hopes to continue the fight.

When Gilmore exploded onto the pro surf scene in 2007, winning the World Title her rookie season, prize money was still glaringly off-kilter. It was typical for her to earn $10K for first place in a single contest while her male counterpart earned $40-$50K. Even in 2018, just months before the WSL’s equal prize money announcement, Gilmore earned $65K for first place at the Rip Curl Pro while the male winner got $100K.

When pay equity in sport started gaining mainstream coverage in the late 2010s, it might have been tempting for surfing to stay in the margins as an alternative sport. One reason that didn’t happen is because their podium celebrations made them an easy target, with winners holding up large checks announcing exactly how much they each earned. And at junior surf events, this practice includes a photo op of the male and female winners standing shoulder to shoulder holding their giant (and lopsided) award checks. Proponents of equal pay helped one such image go viral:

Gilmore has an album’s worth of photos just like this. But in the zeitgeist of 2018, this blatant display of gendered pay disparity didn’t sit well with the public. (If only such outcry was customary practice across the world of sports.)

There are those in the surfing community who think the WSL’s equal prize money announcement was an opportunistic reaction to outside pressure, but Gilmore is more generous in her assessment. She credits the relatively new owners of the WSL with having a progressive vision for the sport and points out that they could’ve easily limited the equal prize money requirement to its top-level events where media attention is primarily focused. This is the current status in tennis, for example: only the four Grand Slams offer equal prize money. In contrast, the WSL has applied the new requirement to all events from top to bottom.

Gilmore points out it’s the lower level events where it has the biggest impact, as female surfers are scraping by to break into the scene and don’t have sponsorship deals yet.

“As a surfer that makes me so proud,” she tells O’Hara, “It’s like, wow, you guys believe in us.”

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ED SLOANE/GETTY IMAGES

What matters even more to Gilmore than equal prize money is equal access to good conditions. For most of her career, it’s been common practice for the men’s heats to get priority when conditions were peak. If the weather shifted and the waves weren’t as ideal, they would often switch and have the women go out. She says things are different now. The women get equal priority. And the (not so shocking) result? The women are shredding.

“When the waves are good and the girls are ripping, everyone’s like, ‘Oh my god!’” she vents to O’Hara, “It’s like, we surf like that. We’ve just never had the chance.”

 For Gilmore, these changes send a valuable message to surfers, fans, and the world at large. It’s a message that says we respect you and we believe in you. It’s about investing on the front end to give the women the best opportunity to succeed and then getting a return on your investment down the line.

 “Build it and they will come,” she affirms to a well-aware O’Hara. It’s an adage ringing true in women’s sports everywhere, as we’ve seen record breaking viewership and consumer demand throughout 2020 as women’s sports get better airtime and promotion dollars.

Moving forward, Gilmore is excited to be a leader in growing the sport she loves.

“I really love showing people female surfing,” she tells O’Hara, “how beautiful it is and how inspiring female athletes are.” Her gratitude for the path her predecessors paved has been transformed into motivation to do the same for the next generation.

Her sole mission now: “To take women’s surfing to new heights.”

Listen to Stephanie Gilmore’s full conversation with Kelley O’Hara on the Just Women’s Sports podcast here.

Gotham, Portland Gear Up for Concacaf W Champions Cup Semifinals

Gotham goalie Cassie Miller makes a save during a 2024 Concacaf W Champions Cup group-stage match.
Gotham played Tigres UANL to a 4-4 draw in last October’s Champions Cup group stage match. (Ira L. Black - Corbis/Getty Images)

The battle for continental soccer glory continues on Wednesday, as the Portland Thorns and Gotham FC land in Mexico for the 2024/25 Concacaf W Champions Cup semifinals.

After advancing past last fall's group-stage play, both NWSL sides now face Liga MX standouts in the knockout rounds with a ticket to Saturday's Champions Cup Final on the line.

The back-to-back semifinals will take place on Wednesday in Nuevo León, Mexico, with live coverage streaming on Paramount+:

  • Club América vs. Gotham FC, 7:30 PM ET: Both the Bats and this year's Liga MX regular season champions are looking to bounce back, as Gotham attempts to shake off a recent NWSL skid while América seeks redemption after stumbling in their season-ending league tournament earlier this month.
  • Tigres UANL vs. Portland Thorns, 10:30 PM ET: Expect a high-energy clash between the three-time NWSL champs and six-time Liga MX title-winners, with the Thorns coming off a five-match undefeated streak and the Tigres shooting to impress in front of their home crowd at Estadio Universitario.

It's not just hardware and continental bragging rights on the line, though.

Saturday's 2024/25 Concacaf W Champions Cup victors will also earn automatic qualification into FIFA's 2026 Champions Cup — a six-team tournament between confederation winners — and the first-ever Club World Cup, which will kick off in 2028.

National Seeds Fall as NCAA Softball Storms into Super Regionals

Ole Miss pitcher Aliyah Binford winds up during a 2025 NCAA softball postseason game.
Ole Miss is one of four unseeded teams to make the 2025 NCAA softball Super Regionals. (Mady Mertens-Imagn Images)

After a first-round weekend of pitcher's duels and red-hot bats, the 2025 NCAA softball tournament's best-of-three Super Regionals field is set — and it's missing four of the 16 national seeds.

No. 10 LSU fell on Saturday after two upset losses to unseeded SE Louisiana, before Sunday saw No. 13 Arizona and No. 14 Duke follow suit while unseeded Ole Miss, Georgia, and Nebraska all punched second-round tickets.

Eventually ousting SE Louisiana in the winners' bracket to advance to their first Super Regionals in 11 years, the Huskers rode in on the back of two-time All-American pitcher Jordy Bahl, with the Oklahoma transfer throwing 12 innings and hitting four home runs across Nebraska's three Regional games.

Elsewhere, unseeded Liberty booked a program-first trip to the Supers by eliminating top-seed Texas A&M — the first time the NCAA bracket's overall No. 1 seed failed to advance from Regionals.

Should they similarly bounce No. 16 Oregon this weekend, Liberty will become just the second mid-major team to make the Women's College World Series (WCWS) since 2014, joining James Madison's 2021 Cinderella run.

Rounding out the rest of the Super Regional round's 16 teams are No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Florida, No. 4 Arkansas, No. 5 Florida State, No. 6 Texas, No. 7 Tennessee, and No. 8 South Carolina, as well as No. 9 UCLA, No. 11 Clemson, No. 12 Texas Tech, No. 15 Alabama, and the aforementioned No. 16 Ducks.

Oklahoma's Ailana Agbayani celebrates her three-run homer with her team during the 2025 NCAA softball tournament.
Four-time defending champs Oklahoma will face Alabama in this weekend's Super Regionals. (BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Super Regional weekend to feature blockbuster matchups

The 16 contenders will battle head-to-head for eight available WCWS berths, with the four-time defending champion Sooners now leading the field.

To advance, however, Oklahoma must first outlast Alabama, a team with which the Sooners have a long, contentious postseason history — the pair have faced off in five of the last 12 NCAA tournaments.

After Oklahoma bounced Alabama from the 2019 WCWS semifinals — the last time the pair squared off before becoming SEC rivals — the Tide enacted revenge by narrowly beating the Sooners in April's conference play, teeing up a tense weekend Super Regional series.

After narrowly missing this weekend's hosting rights as the No. 9 seed — UCLA's lowest seeding since 2016 — the Bruins proved why they are the sport's winningest program, run-ruling ever Regional game while allowing just two runs all weekend.

The 12-time champions will now travel to Gamecock territory, where No. 8 South Carolina will try to boost the Bruins and book their first WCWS ticket in 28 years.

Powerhouses still rule the diamond, but parity has never been higher in college softball, with this year's NCAA tournament already delivering whiplash results.

Texas Tech pitcher NiJaree Canady celebrates a 2025 NCAA softball postseason win.
2024 National Player of the Year NiJaree Canady led Texas Tech to a program-first Super Regional. (Nathan Giese/Avalanche-Journal/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

How to watch the 2025 NCAA softball Super Regionals

The best-of three NCAA softball Super Regionals kick off on Thursday and run through the weekend, with possible winner-take-all clashes finalizing the WCWS slate on Sunday.

First games are as follows:

  • No. 12 Texas Tech at No. 5 Florida State, 7 PM ET on Thursday (ESPN2)
  • No. 11 Clemson at No. 6 Texas, 9 PM ET on Thursday (ESPN2)
  • Georgia at No. 3 Florida, 11 AM ET on Friday (ESPN2)
  • No. 9 UCLA at No. 8 South Carolina, 1 PM ET on Friday (ESPN2)
  • No. 15 Alabama at No. 2 Oklahoma, 5 PM ET on Friday (ESPN2)
  • Nebraska at No. 7 Tennessee, 7 PM ET on Friday (ESPN2)
  • Ole Miss at No. 4 Arkansas, 8 PM ET on Friday (ESPNU)
  • Liberty at No. 16 Oregon, 10 PM ET on Friday (ESPNU)

PWHL Details 2025/26 Expansion Plan, Outlines Draft Rules

A close-up of the PWHL logo patch on the sleeve of a jersey.
The PWHL will expand to eight teams in the league's third season. (Rich Graessle/Getty Images)

With the 2025 PWHL Finals in full swing and new franchises on the horizon, the league rolled out a detailed expansion plan to build its two new teams on Monday.

The expansion process will see 24 current PWHL players — four from each of the six founding teams — join either Vancouver or Seattle next month.

To be eligible for selection, athletes must be either under contract or have rights held by a current team for the 2025/26 season. 

Each original team can protect three eligible athletes at the outset, with squads reserving the right to protect one additional player should the incoming clubs select two players off the same roster.

In the lead-up to June 9th's expansion draft, Vancouver and Seattle will have five days to sign up to five unprotected players each.

After that window closes, Seattle and Vancouver will increase their rosters to a required total of 12 players via expansion draft selections, with the number of picks for each team determined by how many athletes the new franchises choose to sign.

Finally, the West Coast squads will then complete their 23-athlete lineups alongside the other six teams during the PWHL's June 24th entry draft.

With such a broad unprotected player pool, about half of the PWHL's current athletes — including some of its brightest stars — will be up for grabs, ensuring a very different landscape when the league takes the ice for its third season.

USA Hockey Star Hilary Knight Says 2026 Olympics Will Be Her Last

USA hockey forward Hilary Knight skates with the puck.
Team USA captain Hilary Knight will make her international exit after the 2026 Olympics. (Steven Bisig/Imagn Images)


Team USA hockey titan Hilary Knight is hanging up her international skates, with the record-10-time world champion announcing Tuesday that the 2026 Winter Games in Milan, Italy, will be her fifth and final Olympic run.

"It's time," Knight told USA Today. "I'm at peace. I just have this feeling that it’s time."

Going out on her own terms is top-of-mind for the USA hockey great, with Knight acknowledging "That is such a privilege that only a handful of competitors get."

Making her national team debut at 17, the now-35-year-old is one of the sport's most decorated athletes, winning Olympic gold in 2018 to complement three silver medals in 2010, 2014, and 2022.

Just last month, Knight led the US to victory at the IIHF Women's World Championship, and currently sits as the tournament's all-time leader in goals (67), points (120), and assists (50).

Despite her impending step off the international ice, Knight, who currently captains the PWHL's Boston Fleet, plans to continue playing for the second-year league — a pro venture she helped bring to life in 2023.

"I understood what the sport gave me and I wanted to give that to other people," Knight said. "Obviously, there's tons of work that always needs to be done, but I think we now have a career path."
 
 
 
 

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