Olympic Outrage

Public outcry emerges after Russian figure skater fails doping test

Fifteen-year-old Kamila Valieva, originally a frontrunner in the figure skating competition at the 2022 Beijing Olympic Games, stirred up controversy at the games.

Valieva tested positive for three substances: Hypoxen, L-carnitine, and trimetazidine. Valieva claims she accidentally ingested her grandfather’s heart medications, which led to the positive test. These substances improve stamina and endurance while decreasing recovery time.

While Valieva was originally suspended by the Russian Anti-Doping Agency after testing positive, they later cancelled the suspension, a decision that was upheld by The Court of Arbitration of Sport, allowing her to continue competing in the Olympics.

Multiple famous figure skaters like Adam Rippon and Kaitlyn Weaver have expressed their disappointment in the decision to allow her to compete. Rippon called it “a complete slap in the face” to CBS news. 

Here’s what you can do with this: 

Rules and regulations are important to any athletic event- especially when it comes to higher profile ones like the Olympics. Understanding the reasoning behind these decisions is important as a journalist to make sure that your reporting is informed and clear.

This is a great opportunity to write an opinion piece on the presence of doping in the Olympic Games. Do you agree with the decision to allow Kamila Valieva to continue competing? Should she be banned? Identify what your opinion is in this sea of controversy and explain your reasoning.

Transgender athletes under fire

Utah creates board to address the inclusion of trans athletes in high school sports

Utah is at the center of an ongoing national debate in which many are calling for all transgender athletes to be banned from competing in categories that match their gender identity.

Lawmakers have proposed a “School Activity Eligibility Commission,” which would essentially require all transgender athletes to be evaluated on a case by case basis to determine whether or not their individual statistics are at the same level of the age and gender of other athletes.

This is just the latest addition to an ongoing outcry nationally to define whether or not trans athletes should be allowed to compete. Earlier this month Governor Kristi Noem from South Dakota signed a law that bans all transgender girls from competing in women’s sports. In over twenty states, legislators have supported bills that would not allow transgender girls to compete on high school sport teams.

Here’s what you can do with this: 

Topics like these can be confusing to navigate because there is such a mix of political and scientific information. The important thing is to look at the facts here: there are almost no studies that show there is scientific evidence for banning trans athletes from competing with the gender they identify with.

The National Center for Transgender Equality has a guide for journalists on how to report about transgender issues, which includes important terminology and definitions. Utilize this source when tackling these subjects.

Report with sensitivity. Respect gender pronouns of those your interviewing and your fellow reporters. Creating a community that prioritizes inclusivity allows you to report with a greater sense of empathy.

Gen Z sets new trend

Sports are out and shorter video content is in, according to new data

New data identify consumer trends among Generation Z that moves away from the typical notion of extreme sports fans. Consumers aged 16-24 are no longer watching entire games, as they prefer to watch shorter video content.

This data supports the creation of apps like TikTok and Instagram Reels, which cater to the shorter video content Gen Z enjoys. For television networks and sports channels, this news could be troubling.

Only half of people in Gen Z would say they are a sports fan, meaning that sports brands may suffer greatly in the upcoming years as viewership and merchandise consumption will likely decrease.

Here’s what you can do with this: 

Conduct a poll at your school. Find out if students expect extensive coverage of organized sports, and what kinds sports beyond the officially sanctioned ones they’d want to learn more about. They probably have great stories to tell about their own adventures in sports that aren’t a part of your state’s official high school sports association.

Finally, but most importantly, it tells you that your audience may not be all that interested in hearing your opinions about professional and collegiate team sports unless there’s a school angle for the story.

Bottom line, cover high school sports first and best, and diversify that coverage to include lifetime sports and students at your school that compete outside the bounds of your school grounds.