#but it had to be from a sportsperson ?? i think

[ukrfeminism]

Imagine chasing top medals and trophies for Great Britain while earning less than the minimum wage.

That might sound surprising yet it appears to be the reality for some women competing at the highest levels of sport.

More than a third of 143 respondents in a BBC study of elite British sportswomen said they have considered giving up sport because of the cost of living crisis.

More than three-quarters said they earn less than £30,000 a year from sport - with more than four in 10 earning less than £10,000 and six in 10 earning less than £20,000.

According to Office for National Statistics data, the average salary in the United Kingdom was £34,963 in April 2023. The national living wage for someone aged over 23 working a 35-hour week would be up to £18,964 a year.

The BBC study, released on Monday, covered a wide range of issues affecting sportswomen, which we will be covering in a series of stories this week.

Respondents were asked to fill in an anonymous questionnaire. It was sent to 615 athletes across 28 sports and 143 responses were submitted.

The questionnaire was sent to British sportswomen above the age of 16 who compete for their country in senior sport, or at the highest level in their sport at top club level.

It is the fourth time the BBC has conducted research on elite British sportswomen, having previously done so in 2013, 2015 and 2020.

Below are some of the experiences athletes shared with the BBC about the impact of the cost of living crisis, social media trolling, sexism and maternity in sport.

Chasing medals on 'less than minimum wage'

One athlete, who is aiming to qualify for the 2028 Olympics and has won junior world titles, told BBC Sport she had "thought about" quitting sport because of cost but is "not ready to".

She says the starting salary for a job in the field she has studied at university would be more than double what she currently receives in funding for her sport.

"You'd never think I'd be on less than minimum wage," said the athlete, who receives funding of £16,000 a year.

She added that while she should probably get a job on the side to support herself, it simply was not practical because of training times.

"I'd have to work night shifts - you're not going to get international medals if you've got to do that," she said.

She added that the current economic climate made it "hard" to get sponsorship and that her male counterparts seemed to get more sponsorship than women "even though their achievements are the same".

Her views were echoed by others, with one respondent writing: "As much as the profile of women's sport is on the rise, in the smaller sports, sponsorship is decreasing and making it harder to survive even with world-class results and world top-10 rankings."

Another sportswoman spoke of working five jobs to fund her sport, and another said she had struggled to get sponsorship early in her career because she did not have the right body for "bikini modelling".

Six respondents said their income was between £100,000 and £500,000, two put theirs at more than £500,000 but none made more than £1m.

According to the study, more than three-quarters of respondents felt sportswomen are not paid enough compared with sportsmen.

"If a female sportsperson is doing exactly the same training as their male counterpart, but they get paid less, then it will always mean that women are underpaid compared to men, but I do believe it is all going in the right direction," another anonymous response read.

'Requests for naked pictures' and 'I know where you live'

More than a third of respondents said they had been trolled on social media and a quarter had received social media abuse of a sexual nature.

One athlete was trolled after what she said was a result of people betting on her matches.

"Some matches, if it was a big win or big loss, I'd get 15-20 people messaging me on Instagram or commenting all sorts of things," she said.

"A lot of it was about weight, sometimes people would comment on my upper body being leaner than my lower body.

"Some of it was, 'I'm going to find your mum and do x, y and z. Some of it was, 'I know where you live.'"

Another anonymous athlete said they "receive an influx of sexual abuse" after winning medals and another said they had received "requests for naked pictures" and "offers of sponsorship or funding in return for a relationship".

While not directly comparable, a BBC questionnaire in 2020 found 30% of elite British sportswomen had been trolled on social media, a figure that had doubled since a previous questionnaire in 2015.

'I was told my award was for best bum'

Sexism offline is still a concern for sportswomen too, with almost three quarters of respondents saying they had experienced sexism in their sport.

"I'm just so shocked, I'm just on the edge of tears," one athlete told BBC Sport when recounting the time in the past few years that she had gone up on stage to receive a top award for performance and the presenter had announced it was for having the "best bum" in her sport.

"[It was] in front of a room of all the people that I looked up to and aspired to as a young female," she said. "[I wanted to] just get it over with, just let me get off the stage. Now I know what to say. But then I definitely didn't."

The study also found sportswomen felt they were being treated differently to men in terms of coaching.

A third said they did not get enough coaching support compared with men, and a third said their governing body does not support them equally compared with male colleagues.

More than four in 10 said they had experienced another form of discrimination.

Maternity 'feels taboo'

More than a third of respondents said they do not feel supported by their club/governing body to have a baby and continue to compete.

Almost two-thirds do not know what their club/governing body's parental leave policy would be.

One sportswoman said the topic of maternity "feels taboo", another felt their career might be "in doubt" if they brought up the issue, and another said their governing body "has repeatedly put off signing our maternity policy".

A third have delayed starting a family because of their sporting career. Six women said they had had an abortion because they felt a baby would impact their sporting career.

One athlete said she was returning to sport a year after giving birth and had been "severely let down" by her governing body, which had "not been willing to compromise" or understand her needs.

Another said her decisions around maternity were based on "fear of time out of sport and fear of not returning", and another said theirs were around the cost of childcare she would need to continue training.

However, one anonymous response came from a mother back in full-time training after having a baby.

"There is a very good balance to allow me to train a week full-time in the environment and a week training at home, which helps with being an athlete and mum," she wrote.

There was another example of a national team saying they would support athletes wanting to give birth and "return to sport in the quickest and healthiest way possible".

Is any progress being made?

Sportswomen highlighted many challenges in their responses, but several pointed to the success of the Lionesses' high-profile Euro 2022 win as a sign of progress.

When it comes to media coverage, three-quarters do not believe the media does enough to promote women's sport, but more than nine in 10 think media coverage of women's sport has improved over the past five years.

Sports minister Stuart Andrew said he would be convening the first Board of Women's Sport later this month, where "former sportspeople, industry experts and academics come together to explore opportunities and best practice" for women's elite sport.

"We are at a defining moment for women's elite sport in this country," he said. "I want to see it continue to go from strength to strength, with a collective drive to deliver positive change."

Triathlete Laura Siddall spoke of an expectation of women's sport to "be grateful for where you are now".

"I think we can be grateful, but that doesn't mean we're satisfied," she continued.

"We are super thankful that we've made huge progress and super thankful and grateful that we are here now, but does that mean we should be settling? Because there's still a disparity."

[qnewsau]

Valentina Petrillo set to become first transgender athlete at Paralympics

New Post has been published on https://qnews.com.au/valentina-petrillo-first-trans-athlete-at-paralympics/

Valentina Petrillo set to become first transgender athlete at Paralympics

Visually impaired sprinter Valentina Petrillo is set to become the first openly transgender athlete in the Paralympic Games.

“I still find it hard to believe it and I’m keeping my feet on the ground.”Petrillo said in a statement.

“My chance to participate in Tokyo was missed by a whisker, I will only start thinking about the Paris Games once I arrive in France.”

50-year-old Petrillo was selected to represent Italy in the women’s 200m and 400m in the Paris Paralympics.

Diagnosed with a degenerative eye condition stargardt disease at the age of 14, she has won 11 national titles in the male T12 category for athletes with visual impairment between 2015 and 2018.

Petrillo has said she knew she was a woman from as young as nine years old and with her wife’s support, she started living as a woman in 2018, and hormone therapy in 2019.

Transition change for the better

“I’m not the same as before,” she said post-transition in an interview with the BBC in 2021, “my metabolism has changed.”

“In the first months of transition, I put on 10kg, became anaemic, my haemoglobin is low, I don’t have the same physical strength, my sleep isn’t what it was, I have mood swings.”

“I’m not the same as before…better to be a slow happy woman than a fast unhappy man.”

Instagram

“As a sportsperson, to accept that you won’t go as fast as before is difficult. I had to accept this compromise because it is a compromise, for my happiness.”

When asked about her reaction to being selected for the Paralympics, she told BBC Sport she had been “waiting for this day for three years and done everything possible to earn it.”

“I deserve this selection and I want to thank the Italian Paralympic Federation and the Italian Paralympic Committee for having always believed in me, above all as a person as well as an athlete.

“The historic value of being the first transgender woman to compete at the Paralympics is an important symbol of inclusion.”

‘This is Who I Am’

“This is not a lifestyle choice for me, this is who I am.” Petrillo said when asked what she would say to those who feel her presence in Paris is unfair.

“The way I am, like all transgender people who do not feel they belong to their biological gender, should not be discriminated against in the same way that race, religion or political ideology should not be discriminated against.”

“And sport that imposes rules based on a binary way of thinking does not factor this in.”

“It is sport that has to find a solution and excluding transgender athletes is clearly not that solution.”

Last year, Petrillo won two bronze medals at the World Para Athletics Championships.

The Paralympic Games run from 28th August to 8th September.

For the latest LGBTIQA+ Sister Girl and Brother Boy news, entertainment, community stories in Australia, visit qnews.com.au. Check out our latest magazines or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

[nishloves]

my rant

tw: talks about weight increase, low self-esteem, moderate anxiety, procrastinating tendencies. this is also extremely long.

i just really need to talk/vent about it.

the worst part about being a "casual" gamer is, you never know when you might get addicted with it. i play genshin and CoD, while cod doesn't interest me as much anymore and i only ever played genshin for like twice a month but recently- genshin has been taking over lol, i played 3 hours of genshin alone yesterday and mind you- i've already finished all the archon (main) quests and i'm still playing it!!! (this is called procrastination)

and this is not just limited to computer games no, i once was obsessed with aerobics gymnastics and was practising it all around my house (before corona struck and i physically became unable to do many tricks cue *decreasing flexibility/strength/stamina and everything after i got sick. after aerobics, my hyper-fixation was basketball and i would play it for around 2-3 hours everyday, my body slowly started getting better and my love for sports and gym was ignited again but then i entered into the senior year of my school and i had to inevitably focus more on my studies because i still can't see myself being an athlete/sportsperson even though i really love sports.

now, i was a science major in my high-school (my core were - phy, chem and bio) and i had always been a hardworker but i started getting burnt out, the more i strayed away from staying active and being fit, the more of couch potato i became. i somehow started studying nicely again, but got corona in sept.2022 and was on bedrest for two weeks, my schedule was a mess again. during that time, it were only my high-school extracurriculars (anchoring, debating, basketball, student council) which were keeping me happy along with a few friends (who in future became insecure of everything i was doing and shut me off by calling me "fake", that shit hurt.) and because i had missed 2 weeks of school and was already behind the syllabus by myself because of improper time management, so i developed anxiety- i only realised this after i had a mental breakdown in school for 2 minutes which i wasn't able to control instantly. (my anxiety is moderate and i don't need any medicines for it- i just need to keep my schedule productive and avoid procrastination.) i realised that i was quite behind and that i needed to do something so i did, i shut myself off and studied for 3 months without any outside exposure or anything- but that made me gain weight, from a 54kg 5'7 girl, i went on to a 68kg and because i got sick just immediately after, my weight increased to 70kgs. now, don't get me wrong- i love my body, i still like the way i look but, i don't feel healthy and i don't think you can understand how nerve-wrecking it is for a person who could run 5km without a worry pant after 500m. it was really... and i mean really heart-braking, more than my weight gain, it was my inability to do anything which made me more and more insecure about myself.

my anxiety, my newly acquired low self-esteem were adding fuel to my already procrastinating tendencies.

now. that is the main issues- i am a procrastinator, and for some reason i'm unable to fully get out of it and i get even more anxious when my days are going unproductive which they are!

i didn't score bad in my high-school finals, my scores of normal college entrance exams were good enough to fetch me into a top 3 college of our nation for b.sc but- i didn't want that. even though all my other exams went well, i seriously fucked up my medical entrance examination. i thought to take a drop year but im seriosuly scared because i don't think i did anything fruitful this year and i just feel like i wasted an year of my life and my main exams are in 4 months and im really really getting stressed out because the selection rate is only the top 1-2% among 2 million applicants, talk about competition lmao.

see, i am aware that i can do it, i don't know if it is arrogance or optimism but i know that if i really do give it all- my blood, sweat and tears and everything- i know that i'll do better, i will be able to score enough to get a medical college- but the thing is, i feel like i am scared to start and i don't want to be.

i want to- i need to work hard to better than my present-self, i need to work out to get my stamina, strength and flexibility back. and even if i fail- i atleast worked hard, i just don't want to regret anything which i am doing, i need to get out of this slump and i need to convince myself to get up and atleast try everyday. because i seriously seriously think that regret is probably the worst emotion you could feel and i don't want to spend my life regretting my decisions.

i just- had to get it off my chest lol. thankyou for reading this all.

i promise you, i'll be a great doctor one day and will clear this exam with every courage i am able to muster.

i guess... that is all? have a nice day and take care of yourself!

[bakersimmer]

15 questions for 15 mutuals

I was tagged by @devotedsims @adoringsentiment @lilamausmaus @katverse @digitalpaws @zosa95 @idyllicephemera @tinysimmer 💛🤗

Are you named after anyone? Yes, but also no. First of all, most of the women in my grandfather's family have a name that starts with M. This is because his mother was named Maria, so all the names are a tribute to her. However, my name is a combination of my mother's childhood nickname and a name my grandparents liked. My parents had 6 name options and couldn't figure out the one they liked the most. So my grandparents hijacked the naming. They sent them a greeting card, "Congratulations on the birth of …" and my parents were saved from making a choice.

When was the last time you cried? Honestly, I don't remember. But when I cry, it's usually because I'm angry or exhausted.

Do you have kids? Yes. A very energetic and opinionated 7-month-old little lady.

Do you use sarcasm a lot? Yes, but only a little.

What sports do you play/have you played? I'm not really a sportsperson.

What's the first thing you notice about other people? I think it is mainly due to my job; I try to see the big picture rather than a few small things. How they present themselves. Did they make an effort with their appearance? Do they speak arrogantly or vaguely? How's their posture?

Eye color? This is a difficult one to answer...I have blue limbal rings, a greenish-grey center, and many brown speckles. When I ask others to tell me what color my eyes are, they usually say blue or green 🤷🏻‍♀️

Scary movies or happy endings? Both, but mostly scary.

Any special talents? I have a pretty good memory 🤔 For example, due to my job, I had an interview with someone who went to the same elementary school as me. Back then, I only encountered them briefly on two field trips, but as soon as I saw their name in the system, I knew who they were. Also, can I generate ideas quickly? When we have a brainstorming session at work, my boss starts it with the words, "Mari, the stage is yours." 😬

Where were you born? Estonia.

What are your hobbies? Cooking (molecular and fine-dining style), photography, and playing sims. But at the moment, I don't have time for any of those things because "little miss energetic" wants all the attention to herself 🤪

Do you have any pets? Yes. 2 cats.

How tall are you? 165 cm.

Fave subject in school? Biology.

Dream job? Being a chef wasn't my dream job, but I have fond memories of it. The same is with my current job. The common denominator in these two very different work environments is the people around me and the attitude towards me. Therefore, the dream job can be any occupation where my opinion is taken into account, my work is valued, and I'm surrounded by awesome people 🤩

I think I have seen most of you already tagged or replying to this tag🤔 If you are reading this, and you haven't been tagged yet, then now you are 😬

[waru-chan8]

So I think I own you this post.

What is El Desafío?

It’s a talent show where famous people (singers, chef, sportsperson, actors, actress, writers, TV presenters, etc) show off skills that are far away from their normal skills. They also face personal challenge such as facing their fear of highs, been burn alive or drawn

Those challenge are often physics but there are others that consists in learning to play an instrument or learning a dance (one had the pan one, and dancing in the water while is ‘raining’) or moving heavy vehicles (pushing a quad up 11 stairs, doing a complet turn in a 2x2 space and down or move a lorry over glass cups without braking) or learning to shut a weapon. There’s also a face off between 2 different contestats.

All concursants need to go though a challenge called apnea, that consist to hold your breath underwater as long as you can.

How do they won?

Each gala, after all challenge the jury (Santiago, Juan and Pilar) gave points from 1 to 7 and 10 that gets put together, and each gala accumulates to the others. The one in the top is going to win.

What do they win?

Each gala the contestat with the most points get a 6000euros* to donate to whatever cause or NGO they want.

After all the galas (10), the winner gets 30000 euros to donate to an NGO or a cause they want and a BMW car for them.

*+500 euros each 30s that manages to stay underwater the apnea contestant.

Apparently there 10 galas. They are broadcast Fridays 10 p.m Madrid time, and if I can watch them on time, I’ll live blogging it with El Desafío lb, just in case you want to block the tag. I won’t be able to post Jorge’s bit until Saturday-Monday.

As I get to know more about the program, I’ll be going updating this because this is my first time watching it.

Jorge’s challenge so far:

Gala 1: Face off - duel in the heights against Flo, he wins

Gala 2: The human torch. They are going to set Jorge on fire.

Gala 3: Disco GP. Apparently is a dancing/singing one (?) Jorge will be the main character of his own musical!

Gala 4: Extrem aim/accuracy. Jorge will learn how to shoot

Gala 5: apnea

Gala 6: Drone pilot

Gala 7: Films Percussion

Gala 8 - Semifinal 1: Face off - still ring challenge against Laura Escanes. He wins

Gala 9 - Semifinal 2: dancing treadmills (he will dance on treadmills)

Gala 10 - Final: tightrope walker

I’m going to add also the apnea challenge here.

Gala 1: Ana  Guerra - 2 minutes 27 seconds (they add 2500 euros)

Gala 2: Flo - 3 minutes 30 seconds (they added 3500 euros)

Gala 3: Jorge Blanco - 4 minutes 13 seconds (they added 4000 euros)

Gala 4: Laura Escanes - 3 minutes 40 seconds (they added 3500 euros)

Gala 5: Jorge Lorenzo - 3 minutes 33 seconds (they add 3500 euros)

Gala 6: Boris Izaguirre (but he might not do it as he suffered a stroke while recording el Desafío) No apnea this gala

Gala 7: Rosa López - 4 minues 40 seconds. The new all record for this challenge. (they add 4500 euros)

Gala 8 - Semifinal 1: Mariló Montero - 4 minutes 8 seconds (they added 4000 euros).

Gala 9 - Semifinal 2: Boris Izaguirre - 1 minute 16 seconds (they added 1000 euros)

Gala 10 - Final: there’ no apnea

Edit: For those who read the translation. I did my best, but I’m sure there are better translations,, They are nosy as hell and very one speaks over everyone. They use a lot of surprise expression that are difficult to translate in English. And on top of that, Juan, one of the judges is a pain in the ass to translate. He likes to use very long and complicated words and he starts the sentences in 3 different ways. He also uses a lot one expression that there’s no way I can translate it directly to English and I think I translated in in several different ways.

Anyway, I do my best with them.

[bailies-me]

The SM and HYBE drama (and the main third player)

okay so i know this news has been really shocking to all of us. sm is a part of the big 3 in kpop and hybe, right now, is the most profitable company in kpop. both are massive forces in terms of business in music. and it’s now been revealed that hybe had acquires around 14% stakes from lee sooman, making them the biggest stake-holder of sm. this news was really sudden to me and a lot of us, so i decided to do some research. turns out, there’s a lot more going on here. and i mean, a LOT.

a company like hybe in the IT hub of the world (which is south korea btw) is...honestly? nothing. unlike the other big three, hybe’s business is mostly confined to kpop. our concerns about hybe begins and ends about here. now, for sm.

sm is, quite honestly, the MOST influential kpop company, mainly because of the influence it hold outside of kpop. sm, like yg and jyp, is not just restricted to kpop. their “artist-holdings” stretches to sportspersons, actors, comedians, general artists management, etc. infact, sm manages almost 25% of the artists in the korean entertainment industry. 

the second person of conflict; lee sooman.

now unlike yg, jyp and originally, bighit, lee sooman does not have complete control over sm. he quit the position of the ceo in 2010. since then, lee sooman made some big announcements about sm’s suture and what he aims to do with the shares he owns. sm also underwent a tax investigation recently. all in all, there’s been a lot on lee sooman’s plate. he DID want to sell those shares anyway, although i don’t think think he thought the opportunity would appear in this way.

despite being popularly known as the ‘godfather of kpop’, lee sooman has been involved in a power struggle of sorts with his executive board as of 2023. he refused to pass down the shares of the company to his children and has been involved in a business conflict with his nephew, who is one of the current CEOs. lee sooman owns over 18% of the stakes in sm, making him the controlling shareholder (the largest percentage).

now, as the executive board of sm announced them evolving into sm 3.0, they are letting out liquid stakes and shares in the market. and they did this WITHOUT consulting lee sooman. if this happens, he will lose the reigning control over sm. 

so this guy flies over with a broken arm, immediately goes to a hospital (i’m telling you, this whole thing is crazy) and SUES his OWN goddamn COMPANY, which HE founded, for this move, which he claims is illegal.

the third player: kakao group. this is where it all comes together.

so, remember kakao talk? that cute little messaging app? yeah, that’s korea’s biggest messenger app and is used by 90% of the population. kakao is the no.1 competitor of naver in japan. i don’t know anything about the business world at all but i do know that kakao is one of the biggest conglomerates (#15) in korea and the BIGGEST conglomerate that is not involved in the manufacture sphere. they are huge. they are a tech-based internet company formally established in freakin 2010 after the merging of DAUM and the KAKAO INC. it has 128 affliates under it. being a conglomerate means that it essentially is composed of multiple independent business holdings. as of august, 2021, it is a bank, a payment service, a game company, an entertainment company, a fashion unit and of course, a mobility platform.

now, incase you didn’t hear of it, ive was involved in a fraud scam recently. that is because their company starship’s largest shareholder, was accused of sabotaging other rival kpop groups by mass circulating negative articles and rumors. these articles were directed at groups like le sserafim, new jeans, stayc, itzy, etc. they were also accused of rigging music stages and award shows. and guess who this shareholder was? kakao group.

so two things: 1. kakao is a group which has been expanding its monstrous presence in the kpop scene for some time now and also happens to have a great deal of authority on circulatory media. 2. sm suddenly has a lot of stakes to sell. what happens next?

since kakao had been targeting the smaller companies of kpop so far, the big 3 + hybe had not been particularly bothered by this. kakao still does not have a very strong presence in kpop and entertainment is a competitive field, largely based on luck. however, if kakao does start acquiring the shares of the bigger company, it’s going to create a big problem. and guess what happened?

kakao declared that its going to take over the shares on march the 6th. now the exact percentage seems to be unclear but i’m pretty sure general consensus says its over 10%. 

if kakao did go through with this, it’s going to threaten the level of competition and the heirarchy of kpop. ik this doesn’t necessarily sound bad; i mean, who doesn’t love the fall of the monopoly capitalism. but NO, it’s the exact opposite. kakao has a lot more power than any of the kpop companies. it can manipulate media. if it does end up becoming the controlling shareholder of the biggest kpop company, and considering the fact it’s a tech company, it might shake the very foundations of kpop. the overruling monopoly in kpop will be officially established. imagine amazon and elon musk-esque craziness ensuing.

this is why lee sooman turned to bang sihyuk. it is why hybe bought 14.8% of his shares and became the largest shareholder. funnily enough, hybe is actually “trying to protect” sm from being sold out to kakao. and believe me, kakao CAN and WILL do all of the above if given the chance. 

this is not to say that this drama has ended. since sm’s executive boards not only control the music sector but the other fields too, and because they have a personal agenda against lee sooman, they are expressing their displeasure over hybe acquiring the stakes. and no, hybe does not “own” sm. it will have the largest say in executive matters overall but it will not OWN sm. in order to fully acquire sm, hybe needs to over over 51% of the shares, which, you know what? who knows what might happen in the future. the story has just begun. the next stage is to wait for march 6th.

this is not a power grab. this is an emergency decision to protect kpop from kakao. a decision which has the complete potential to turn very bad, very soon.

[danggirlronpa]

Oh! Well I can solve the mystery for you. My first mom and my second mom were married before my second mom came out as a transwoman! They are both my biological parents. They got divorced before she came out, not because she came out or anything. They were very much already divorced when my second mom came out. I call her "second mom" because she's younger than my first mom.

Also, yeah, I totally agree that the fandom at large only headcanoning the Murder characters as nd is. Really bad, actually! I do forgive it more for Danganronpa specifically since. Most of the cast are murderers, lol, but when in fandoms with a ton of morally upright characters in it, only the villains are headcanoned as nd is just. Oof. I would love to see more characters like Izuku Midoriya being headcanoned to have bipolar, because (imo) I can definitely See it for him. Another character I headcanon as bipolar from Danganronpa is actually Kaede Akamatsu! She's great. I didn't mention her though since I tend to see V3 as taking place in a different universe unless it's a AU, tbh. But you're definitely right that it's an issue in fandom spaces. Funnily enough, my therapist specifically told me to headcanon more characters and/or create ocs with bipolar, so that's what I've been doing. She said it was good to see myself in characters.

But yeah!!! Sato & Mikan murder4murder nd couple who messily makes out!!! Tbh I think a lot of people forget that Sato and Mikan were Friends!!! I want to see more content out there exploring their dynamic. They are both So Normal about love (read: they both get extremely attached to people who show them even An Ounce Of Kindness. relatable tbh)

A FOURTH second mom option!! We Love To See It. (& you absolutely should headcanon characters as bipolar!! The reason I was specifically like "this isn't directed at you" was because it's important & wonderful to see people looking at characters like themelves - I just wanted a General Disclaimer, since DR is so. Gestures To DR. I'd LOVE to hear more about bipolar Kaede, what a great concept!!)

One of my (many) (sorry DR3 fans) gripes with DR3's choice to make Chiaki a Real Girl TM and setting Sato into the Reserve Course instead of making Sato the 16th student in Chiaki's place is that there's no indication of the group friendship we see in Twilight Murder Syndrome in the anime. (Especially when the game specifically hinted at Sato's ultimate talent! She mentions archery club! For no reason!! Except to establish the "ultimate sportsperson as class' first blackened" parallel to Leon!!) And there's a lot of other reasons that happened, too, including the anime relegating what was an ensemble cast into a couple mains and a series of background characters, and the overarching story choices that restricted their timeline.

But it's always SUCH a bummer to me to watch "Ibuki, Mikan, Hiyoko, Mahiru, and Sato had a complex group dynamic, the breaking of which ultimately led to the ruination of all their lives and the lives of several others" into "Mahiru had a girlfriend and it made her sad for a few minutes, and then everyone moved on." Like. There wasn't ANY other way to establish Hajime's character arc?? I have to stop or I'm just going to work myself up about DR3. But it bums me out. And I LOVE seeing representations of the dynamics that could've been. Sato and Mikan is a top tier of them for SURE.

[capwilliamsxn]

Few points:

1. People can just feel bad mentally for no reason, so to the anons asking why we think she had a bad time mentally - she doesn’t need a reason. Not having a go by the way, just stating that a lot of us have felt a bit grim because of a lot of things - just general politics, weather, the state of the world etc.

2. To the people blaming Leah for the loss, a loss with 11 people on the field is not a loss caused by one. Liverpool scored an own goal today, their 6-0 loss wasn’t the fault of that one goal, it was a host of problems within the team. Similarly, Leah having a lapse of concentration (or whatever) didn’t cause us to draw against Chelsea. We should’ve been 3-0 up by 60 minutes. It’s easy to blame the equaliser than the missed opportunities. Leah had perfectly blocked Kerr on many occasions before that one slip up.

3. Just a general thank you to yourself, and the people who visit your page, for having some understanding about them. I consistently see them (and you) being very diplomatic about the speculation. Actually analysing things before they are posted makes such a big difference. TikTok is full, and I mean full, of people (most children) arguing with each other and saying ‘she’s gonna feel so bad, she’s already said it’s her fault and her mental health is already so bad’. This is not the case. She accepted responsibility for the goal, and that’s fair enough because she was the one marking Kerr, but she did not accept responsibility for the loss, which was correct. These people that start this crap on social media are the reason the women’s game is looked at in the way it is - we should be able to critique their football - celebrate it when it’s great, and comment (without being rude) when it’s not. That’s what we do for men, so why not for women? To say that we need think before we do that because they’re vulnerable and women is so incoherently silly when we are trying have it looked at as equal.

yeah, i agree with what your saying.

i think that people should definitely be allowed to criticise a player and teams performance without being attacked by ‘fans’ who don’t want to be honest. i’ve seen this a lot with the new arsenal fans, especially when we play bad. people act like we were perfect when we weren’t. and yeah, we’re not going to be 100% all the time, but it’s not wrong to admit that and point out what could’ve been better. it’s what makes the players themselves so good. if leah didn’t take responsibility for that mistake on the pitch tonight, she wouldn’t be the player, teammate and person she is (ability or personality wise).

plus, to say we shouldn’t critique them because they’re women is not only sexist but completely dumb and ignorant. for ANY sportsperson (regardless of gender) to improve, they need feedback from their managers, coaches, teams etc. otherwise they’d get injured, plateau and probably have no success at all.

also, honestly, i think that if more people gave thought to what they were saying before they posted it/shared it/whatever then social media (& the world) would probably be better off for it.

[cant-get-no-worse]

hii !!!

thank you, thank you, thank you for responding with such a detailed answer, you’re a gem <33

people hear post wc footy fan and just cringe so you understand my reasons sjskjsjanaj i mean we were all casuals at one point right? why gatekeep ??

wow, you know what they say about money, its not everything but its right up there with oxygen. i think the barca board ( bartomeu ) has a lot of flaws —in that one recent interview suarez said that neymar was planning to stay when suddenly his family made the decision to leave. there were a lot of reasons but the decision came after his personal info ( bonus?? ) kept getting leaked from the club, and that was the final straw or something, plus messi’s he stays insta post after the club’s decision to sue neymar back was sort of a dig at the board too ( so so so real of him !! ) —read this all on the internet btw

never a boring day at futbol club bassalona.

but all that aside, the loyalty bonus was part of his newly renewed contract right, so forget him leaving to psg, it was something both parties agreed on and signed on paper so don’t you think that neymar was entitled to that 43 mil? ( unpaid labour uno )

They also ask for him to return the €14M of the loyalty clause that had already been paid to him + 10% for delayed payment of said €14M + €8.5M in damages —this was overkill tbh. i get not paying the remaining 29 mil but asking for the already paid 14 mil back was too much. not that i’m in any position to comment on it, considering barça’s financial crises 💀

now i get why culér’s on twt get so triggered when neymar is affiliated to barça in any way. leaving the club like that and suing them later too 💀💀 they don’t even consider him a barça legend ( debatable ) they're so blinded by hate for him that they blame him for the clubs financial problems like its not neymar’s fault barça didn't make productive use of that 222 mil ffs 😭

for me the media & journalists will ever be trustable when affiliated to neymar. like the media ( especially the english ) truly despises him in this vengeful way i’ve never seen with any other sportsperson, and i don’t understand it either, from what i've heard neymar was football's IT boy back in the days. whatever happens i blame neymar pai, this man + his toxic friends are truly the root cause of all of neymar’s poor career decisions.

there’s only so much hate a person can take. i truly admire his determination, like man constantly gets hated on, questioned and hurt all the time ( physically and mentally ) and he just keeps going. i just hope he gets his happy ending ( like messi before him ), he deserves it and so much more. i think that’s enough rambling for now 😵💫

—A⋆

Bahaha Bartomeu was absolutely cancerous. The contracts he gave to players were absolutely insane and we're still trying to shake off its consequences years later — thankfully we seem to be on the right path, looking at the current numbers!

Yeah, Neymar's reasons for leaving is still something I believe we'll truly never get the final word of — whether it came from him, his family, his father solely, a fallout with the barça board following, as you said, some contract revelation, etc. Just one of the obscure politics going on at that god forsaken institution haha.

Weeeell, tbh for once I'm understanding Barça side on that, you know? The loyalty bonuses were (seemingly) stipulating for him to go to the end of said re-signed contract, which he did not do by signing elsewhere, so I get the club's decision to not pay him the rest. Although as you pointed out, reclaiming the 14M seems so rat-like but given our financial state, I mean. 💀 The thing I don't get is why would you, as a club, give beforehand money that is to be given when your player has gone to the end of his contract before the fucking end of said contract. You don't know if said player's gonna stay! So why on God's green ball would you give those millions away for a bonus clause that's not even fulfilled? The whole thing is so mind-boggling I'm certain I'm not getting the inner workings of this right, because I cannot believe a board / club would do something this ridiculous financially speaking, even during the Bartomeu era.

Neymar's legend status at Barcelona is a whole part of why it used to make me sad thinking about it — he left wanting to cement his legacy, but by doing so, six years later, he isn't considered a legend neither at PSG nor at Barcelona (there's some debate, as you said, but at the end of the day, his name is always going to be out-shadowed by others and even fucking Geri or Luis have, in the eyes of many, a stronger case than him) because of that move, whereas had he stayed and won some more, that would have become undisputed. Enough to get you mad, truly, if you think too hard about it. And bahaha, the 222M — let's just collectively be affected by a case of sudden amnesia, shall we.

He was the IT boy, I truly think he embodied the very definition of a starboy footballistically-wise. Sad to think he possibly never let himself/had the right environnement to grow out of it. His dad being one of the key point at that, indeed. I don't know if you're around those spheres or something, but there's a French influencer/comedian on Instagram that talked about it once. From what I remember, he met Neymar for an ad, a sponsor, an interview or whatever the sweet fuck that thing was, and he recalled having been struck by the coldness of the interactions between Neymar and his father/agent. Now, you could say this is only the professionnal façade given by the pair to some media people and we don't know what's going on behind the scene, and I'm all for this, but what he specifically pointed out wasn't so much being weirded out by the player/agent but more by the player/father relationship. He wondered how one could sustain a healthy familial dynamic between a father and a son - one he saw absolutely none of during his brief time spent with Neymar and Sr, said he didn't felt like Sr was Neymar's father at all, directing him, telling him what to do at any point - all while maintaing a healthy profesionnal environnement between an agent and a client. The family member/agent/player/child boat is a whoooole other discourse that we could have for lots of players, and not only in football, it's actually kind of mad. I think it was Zlatan (my man <3) who said nowadays family members took too much space in their child/player's life and the medias, forgot to draw the right lines, forgot who was getting the money in/working or something.

Anyways, his environnement? Big bruh. I don't want to get into it cause we don't know what happens behind closed doors, once again, but part of me hope the birth of his second child will make him realize that to live a healthy, independent life with his close family/loved ones does not include allowing your jobless friends to squat your home 24/h.

& I agree with your conclusion! For all the bad stuff you can point out about him, because there is plenty, you can find good stuff in equal amounts, if not more. His resilience, both physical and mental, is one of those exceptionnal strong character points about him that somehow seem to fly under the radar. To have suffered stardom at the dawn of the internet at such a young age, a potential career-ending injury, multiple injuries slowing your progression, a very lively and pressured environnement of friends/family, the endless eyes of the medias - whether English, French or Spanish constantly quesitonning your life or career choices, all that is exhausting on both sides. Many would have given up for less. I truly wish for him to win something, if not a club level, at least with the National Team, so he can at least have that for him.

Oops you made me ramble again. Eheh. Much love! 💙

[f1reader]

He might have been karting since the age of ten, but remarkably Kimi had only raced cars on 23 occasions (three in Formula Ford and 20 in Formula Renault) before he joined the grid for the 2001 Australian Grand Prix. Bearing in mind that in 2000 a Formula Renault car was powered by a 185 bhp engine from a Renault Clio, the step up to a 800bhp+ Sauber F1 car was a big one. However, Kimi took to F1 incredibly quickly, being on the pace of Sauber’s regular drivers on just his second day in testing. There were many who voiced concerns about granting an F1 Super Licence to a driver with so little experience, but Sauber signed him for the 2001 season regardless.

He really is the ‘Iceman’

It was Ron Dennis that gave Kimi the nickname of ‘Iceman’ when he was driving for McLaren but his laid-back approach and ability to remain unfazed by anything F1 could throw at him were never more evident than on the day of his F1 debut in Australia 2001. You might have expected a 21-year-old with so little experience to be anxiously pacing up and down the garage 30 minutes before the start of his first race. Not Kimi though – he was fast asleep in the Sauber motorhome. Having qualified just three tenths of a second slower than his much more experienced team-mate ‘Quick Nick’ Heidfeld, he scored a point with a sixth-place finish in his very first F1 race.

Except when he’s not the Iceman

Speaking recently on the ‘F1: Beyond the Grid’ podcast, Fernando Alonso had this to say about Kimi: “He’s a very good character in Formula 1 and we will miss him… he’s very honest, he’s not playing any games, he’s what you see. A part of this may be a mask that we see from him, of being very cold and not talking too much. There is a different person I think inside… not the Iceman. I think he’s quite warm inside, even if you need to meet him outside of racing, it’s when you see the real Kimi”.

He tells it like it is and always makes us smile

Kimi might not be known as F1’s chattiest driver, but when he does speak, he comes out with some real corkers. In an era when most drivers are terrified of upsetting their bosses and sponsors, Kimi doesn’t seem to care. Here are a few of his most famous quotes:

- On the grid prior to the 2006 Brazilian GP, Kimi was approached by Martin Brundle on live TV. "You missed the presentation by Pele, will you get over it?" asked Brundle. "Yeah. I was having a sh*t," replied Kimi.

- Whilst leading the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2012 Kimi was clearly becoming irritated by the instructions coming over the radio from his Race Engineer. "Just leave me alone, I know what I’m doing," he said. Then later in the race when told to look after his tyres, he replied, "yes, yes, yes, I’m doing that all the time – you don’t have to remind me every 10 seconds…" Apparently, he did know what he was doing because he went on to win the race.

- When asked how he found the new McLaren in testing in January 2004, Kimi didn’t mince his words. "It’s complete sh*t," he replied in Finnish.

- Interviewer: What is the most exciting part of the race?

- Kimi: I think it’s the start, always

- Interviewer: And the most boring?

- Kimi: Now

He’s monumentally smart when it comes to money

His manager will probably want to take some credit here, but despite winning just the one championship, Kimi has become phenomenally wealthy. His net worth has been estimated at between $200-250m. Only Alonso, Hamilton and Schumacher have earned more from the sport and in 2009 he was said to be the second highest paid sportsperson in the world after Tiger Woods.

One of his most impressive deals was the one with Ferrari for the 2010 season. The team had both Massa and Raikkonen under contract but desperately wanted Fernando Alonso in the car. The solution was to offer Kimi a reputed £20m not to drive that year.

Then there was the time that he nearly bankrupted the Lotus team. When Kimi signed his two-year deal with Lotus he was to receive both a salary and a points bonus. The team clearly weren’t confident that they would do particularly well because they apparently agreed to pay €50,000 per point scored. Kimi went on to finish on the podium 13 times and win twice, scoring 390 points over the two years. That would have meant a bonus of €19.5m!

Series 18, episode 7 in March 2012 saw Kimi join Jeremy Clarkson as the ‘star in a reasonably priced car’. He wasn’t particularly quick in the Suzuki Liana but to be fair, it was ‘extremely wet’ that day. Regardless, for a man who has talked about hating giving interviews, he entered into the spirit of things and gave us a lot of laughs.

He’s a proper F1 driver

But the main reason why we love Kimi, is that he’s a proper F1 driver. As the 2007 World Champion, his name will forever feature on a list that includes the likes of Fangio, Clark, Stewart, Senna, Schumacher and Hamilton. Kimi deserves his place amongst the greats - he’s fast, committed and supremely talented, but most of all, he clearly loves F1. With the exception of Schumacher and Alonso, no other driver has still been competing at this level fourteen years after winning their first championship.

[iguessricciardo]

Hi, im going through something. Its gonna be long so im sorry in advance, i just really needed to get this out of me. I really dont think some people can comprehend what fangirling means or how it affects your life or it actually comes at a point where you needed it the most thats why you develop that obsession. I KNOW it seems stupid to everyone but my obsession with any celeb, band, fictional character, show, team or sportsperson came at a point when i needed it the most. To help me get through something that i was genuinely hurt and scarred by and couldnt stop thinking about. So i ran into the way of that obsession. Which is exactly what happened with my formula 1 but specifically daniel ricciardo obsession. I swear to go god he was the getaway from my depressing thoughts and ideas and the sickening headspace i had been on for months. I was the most heartbroken and hurt ive ever been in my life and at a mind where i thought noone could never love me for who i am bc im not worthy. Then i started to get involved with f1 and him. I needed to hold on to something that could make me busy in my own head and i could love and support and follow up. I SWEAR TO GOD nobody or nothing helped me as much as that man getting on that car every weekend or his silly goofy mood videos from past. You know that video with his nephew when he falls trying to say hi and daniel laughs and he falls and daniel laughs harder?? That was the first thing that put a genuine smile on my face and made me laugh in a while when i saw it. I had been the most silent ive been in my life during that depressing period and everyone around me was worried bc i genuinely lost my spark. But then i found myself talking about daniel, his funny moments, achivements to everyone around me, discussing it with such an interest and that was the only thinh that kept me engaged and happy. And mostly for me, those obsessions or hardcore fangirling slowly fades away in time when i start to heal. And i can tell you that him just being him helped me heal even tho this year was also one of his most struggling seasons. But im not ready. Im just not. Im absolutely sobbing writing this. Im not ready to let him go, neither from my headspace nor from that sport. It sounds so silly when i say this but he means so much in my life. Im just not ready and i dont know what to feel other than that wave of sadness

this!!!!!!!!!! you’re absolutely right about everything you said and i couldn’t agree more. I’ve been going through so much this year and literally the only thing keeping me together is a man driving a car even though he mostly had shit races, i needed a distraction and he’s there and seeing how he gets up after every fucked up race and can’t wait for another race weekend gives me so much motivation to this day. and seeing how he needs a break, i understand that, i really do. hopefully he’ll still be around and give us more videos and we can still connect with him i guess.

[totallyhussein-blog]

Reflections on the healthcare needs of veterans

Paul Swain, an armed forces veteran, explains why it is vital that the military community access healthcare and how he’s received help from the OpRESTORE service run by former armed forces clinicians at the Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust in London.

Tell us a little about your military background.

I joined the Army when I was 17, following in my brother’s footsteps. What appealed to me was the opportunity to give service to my country and by doing so, seeing places that in normal civilian life, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to experience.

I joined a reconnaissance unit, which formed part of the Royal Armoured Corps. Frontline duties followed. I was very involved in military life, representing the Army in both football and boxing, and over my 17 year career, I worked my way up to instructor level where I taught the next generation of armed forces. I served in Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan.

What happened that meant you needed healthcare support?

In active service you see people getting hurt, but you never think that it will happen to you. In May 2011, I was mentoring members of the Afghanistan army to best prepare them ahead of British troops returning to England. One day during training, my translator stood on a hidden landmine device which exploded next to me.

The blast caused serious injuries and I was put on life support, with internal damage caused to the left side of my body. I lost my left arm just below the elbow.

Once I was stabilised enough to fly, I was taken to Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham, a hospital which specialises in treating military personnel with acute traumatic injuries.

What did your immediate recovery look like?

I had a number of surgeries on my left arm to stabilise it and to prevent further complications.

The next few years involved adapting to a new way of living as an amputee with occupational and physiotherapy support. I re-entered civilian life when I was discharged from the Army in February 2014.

Was it difficult leaving the Army?

You are in your own military bubble and so it took me time to adjust when I was no longer in active service. I expect it’s like when a professional sportsperson retires and you suddenly find yourself with lots of spare time and a need to find a new role in life.

What brought you to OpRESTORE?

Like many people, I struggled during lockdown because of the isolation. This coincided with physical complications of my amputation and some symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. While my GP was really supportive and academically understood the conditions I was suffering from, they didn’t have the experiences that I had, and so didn’t 100 per cent get where I was coming from.

I reached out to the Help for Heroes charity who put me in touch with OpRESTORE who could look at my physical and mental health needs in a more holistic way. OpRESTORE is run by medics who have given military service so they better understood my experiences and unique needs.

What support did you access from OpRESTORE?

I had bone spurs protruding from my amputation site which was causing pain and sores and made it difficult for me to wear my prosthetic arm. The OpRESTORE team carried out surgery by trimming down the spurs and then taking a skin graft from my right leg to better protect my amputation site.

When I came for my surgical consultations, it wasn’t a ‘just about the surgery and close the door as you leave’ kind of appointment. My surgeons Mr Reilly and Mr Hettiaratchy were asking ‘what else can we do to support you?’. They put me in touch with experts to support me with my other issues – not necessarily health related – so I was getting the full range of support I needed, alongside my surgery.

What would you say to other veterans who may be reluctant to access healthcare?

I can only talk from my experience as everyone’s experience is different. I felt that I developed a stiff upper lip which made me think I should suffer in silence rather than deal with the physical and mental health symptoms I was experiencing.

The thing about OpRESTORE is that you don’t have to navigate the health system all on your own – you can get help from skilled members of the military family that have some experience of where you’re coming from.

There are still challenges that I’m facing but life in general is better than before I accessed OpRESTORE. If you are from a military background and have health symptoms that require support, make your GP aware of the service and ask them to refer you.

[provoking-disparities]

As you all must be aware about the recent Manipur Crisis. This dispute is continuing for an indefinite period now and should be a daily major headline for our news sources. But this is not the case sadly. This is something we could even talk later. But laying emphasis on today’s topic of silence of PM Modi on a communal clash between the tribal groups in Manipur.

What’s the Case

The story dates back to a judgment by the Manipur High Court to include Meitei group in ST caste to give them enough reservations. But on April 27, some groups of Kuki-Zomi ethnicity broke out violence in Churanchandpur district, some days before the CM had to arrive. Then on May 3, Tribal Solidarity March was conducted by the All Tribals Student Union of Manipur, which also resulted in violent clashes.

From that day till today, many people have sacrificed their lives in the communal clashes. Both the communities are involved in illegal trafficking of weapons across the states which help them in defending against each other. Many heart-touching stories come out daily that how men are defending their security camps by carrying weapons in their own hands.

Legal Action

On April 28, Section 144 was imposed in violence hit regions and internet have been shut down.

Many rounds of delegatory meetings have taken place both at the center and state too. Even Home Minister and one the most prominent leaders of NDA faction, Mr. Amit Shah also visited the state for his meetings with the officials and also visited the security camps to ensure every basic facility is provided to the survivors. But there is not everything white in this case. As per reports, there has not been any significant difference from the start even when HM visited the state.

Hemanta Biswa Sharma has been one the major leaders of BJP and the face of North East, was also active in the round tables and in some of his recent interviews he claimed that violence has been controlled during this week, but this is not the true as per the on ground news sources.

Where is PM

It is a big question that where is PM, when one of the biggest ethnic clashes is being observe in his regime.

Is he busy taking world round trips?

Why not any word about the Manipur by him?

Is it because Manipur is a north eastern state and not a northern one?

These are some of the biggest questions by critics all over the country. PM was on a state visit to US recently, where also he dealt with a question of treating minority in a democracy.

To which he answered beautifully by describing India as the home to democracy and we lead our country according to our constitution and even minorities are happy and secured in our country. Many of the protesters were lined up during his visit, but were scattered like pieces of cards.

PM has not conveyed his messages for Manipur, not even a message conveying his sympathy to families where they have lost their young blood, which became a debatable concern for our media houses. It is not the fact that he has not been active on the concerns of his home country, be it Balasore train accident, UCC implementation or celebrating 9 years of completion of his government. He has been indulging in many public gathering in the past couple of months, but is Manipur only which he does not target at.

He is very quick in responding to any concern around the globe and even in India, any of the achievements or other. But it has become one of the trends of ignoring to react or keep silent on the main problems and renouncing the unnecessary topics. We saw his same response in the ongoing wrestler’s protest. Whereas he is not behind supporting the sportsperson by the personally texting or calling them after their major wins or loses to give them sympathy. I think it may be due to lack in his own governance . BJP is lacking the moral rule of democracy which is ‘ It is rule of people, by the people, for the people’.

News and Statistics

In my research across multiple media sources that the official twitter handle of Manipur BJP is not concerned about the crisis in their state as they are busy criticizing the opposition on some previous topics, which I think is not favorable in this serious atmosphere.

They are busy circulating Mr. Modi’s praising around the world.

PM Modi’s official twitter handle also deals with quite same kind of content, with a lots of videos of his international trips to both US and Egypt. As he was welcomed in the Senet and gave an outstanding speech over there, so his handle is full of clips of him addressing the parliament, which is also necessary but not more than the domestic concerns.

This was his first state visit to US, where he was bestowed with mixed reactions but only a polished image was highlighted in his handle.

More than 115 people have been killed and 40,000 displaced from their homes due to ethnic violence in Manipur that began on May 3. Many irrecoverable loses have left the families with a deep scare in their hearts.

Leaders of 10 opposition parties, including one former chief ministers and two former speakers on 17th June sought an urgent audience with PM Modi on unabated ethnic violence before he departed to US on 20th June. But he didn’t bother to have a word with them and left for US not attending them.

I am not only opposing PM for his silence, I know that he might be quite busy in his work for a couple of month. But in my knowledge, concerns of the domestic territory should be the first priority for a national level leader and if he is PM Narendra Modi, who is considered a messiah by many, this kind of act does not justifies his indefinite contributions for the national well being. We all have seen him in a current meeting discussing about the Manipur crisis but it should be made public by them to console the hearts of the critics.

[astrosblogs]

Phone Numbers Are Being Tracked, Alleges Wrestler Bajrang Punia

The Delhi Police has filed two FIRs, including one under section 10 of POCSO act against the BJP MP Brij Bhushan, who has denied all the charges.

New Delhi: 1 Calling it a “black day”, the protesting grapplers and their supporters on Thursday wore black bands with Bajrang Punia, one of the prominent faces of the sit-in, alleging that their phone numbers are being tracked.

The protest against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, accused of sexual harassment and intimidation by the grapplers, entered the 18th day.

Top Indian grapplers Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang, Sakshi Malik, Satyawart Kaidyan and Jitender Kinha all tied black bands on their forehead while a few supporters sported them on their arms as a mark of protest against what they see as a lack of action against Brij Bhushan.

The wrestlers have been demanding the arrest of Brij Bhushan, who they have accused of sexual exploitation of several women grapplers including a minor.

The Delhi Police has filed two FIRs, including one under section 10 of POCSO act against the BJP MP, who has denied all the charges.

“We are observing a black day today in protest against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. We are confident of our victory as the entire nation is with us in our fight,” Bajrang Punia said.

“Day by day our protest is gaining momentum and we will continue to fight till we get justice.

“Nowadays our phone numbers are being tracked, we are being treated in a manner where it seems as if we have committed a crime. Whoever is in our contact is being tracked, I am telling you,” Mr Punia told reporters.

The World Championship and Olympic medallist was critical of athlete Seema Antil, who said their protest has had a negative impact on the sport with camps and trails not taking place.

“I don’t understand that she is saying that we are causing damage to the sport rather than Brij Bhushan. It’s very strange that she doesn’t understand this despite being a sportsperson.

“I don’t think she should have said what she said. We respect her she is a good athlete but she should think before coming out with a statement,” Mr Punia said.

A large delegation of Bharat Kishan Union Ekta (Azad), mostly comprising women from Punjab arrived at the Jantar Mantar on Thursday to show their solidarity towards the protesting wrestlers.

Speaking of the possibility of financial bungling, he asked the WFI, “Which money have you spent, where has Tata’s money gone. The Tatas have been giving you money for the last five years, where is that money? “We have also requested Ratan Tata ji to find this out, whether his money is reaching the right place,” the ace wrestler added.

On the brighter side, Bajrang welcomed the move to hold the women’s camp in Patiala.

“We welcome the shifting of the women’s camp to Patiala. Wherever athletes have access to all the facilities set up camp there rather than having it in a place where they are being exploited and mistreated.” Besides members of Mazdood Adhikar Sangathan, Sonipat and a small delegation of youth students from Bhagat Singh Youth Union, Maharashtra also came in support of the wrestlers on Thursday.

Wrestler Bajrang Punia continued, “See nothing is bigger than the judiciary. We have full faith in the court, our fight is for the truth. I don’t think India has seen something like this in the past.

“We get strength when we see the support we are getting from all corners from of the country.

“This was the time to prepare for the Asian Games and Olympics, so it’s very sad and unfortunate. It’s a huge loss for sports that we have been protesting for the past 19 days.”

[aasmauk]

Top 5 Factors Why Football is The Most Popular Sport?

Luckily, I was able to come to the most effective five factors that contributed to the fact that "Awesome sport" made the most played sport in the world.

1. Simplicity: Easy to grasp and play

The simplicity of this game is the primary reason soccer is considered the most played game. The rules of soccer are fairly simple to comprehend, but some rules are complex and slightly difficult to grasp, but you'll be aware of them when you begin playing. Like all sports, it's difficult at the beginning to master, but as you master and learn the art of playing and football is no different. It's a little challenging in the early stages but not difficult to master the fundamental skills regardless of how intensely and thoroughly you train and play.

Read Louis Saha Matturie

However, the basic rule of football is that you should have eleven players on your team. Matches are 90 minutes long. Within that 90 minutes, your team must ensure that the ball land on the goalpost of your opponent; however, you are not allowed to touch the ball. A goal is worth one point. The team with more goals scored within 90 minutes is the winner of the game. There are rules for advanced play, such as a corner, offside penalty, free kick, and red and yellow cards.

All you require is a ball and a couple of friends to play with. If you want to play soccer alone, you can improve your abilities like juggling, shooting, ball control stamina, etc.

2. Inexpensive

For football, you don't require a football, and I remember from high school when my classmates and I used to play football using empty bottles of plastic or Tetra packs. Things like this used to be football balls.

The greatest thing about soccer is it can be played anywhere within limited space. We used to enjoy playing on the roads, in car parking spaces, and in open spaces; even I played at home with my older brother. We used objects such as stones, sandals, or rocks to serve as goalposts, and we played with our feet barefooted. Our legs used to hurt; however, we would play. All we require is one ball.

It's about having fun playing soccer; however, if you'd like to play professionally, you must spend some money. It would help if you had good quality football balls and soccer shoes, shinguards, football socks, and a few jerseys; that's it if you want to buy football equipment for a low cost depending on you. You can purchase cheap or expensive soccer equipment. Of course, Nike, Adidas, and puma's major brands will come at an expensive price.

However, football is significantly less expensive and requires less equipment compared to other sports such as cricket (Leg pads, helmets, cricket gloves, etc.), soccer, or baseball, which can make soccer more well-known.

3. Football is for all

Football is a sport that can be played by anyone of any age, from children to senior individuals. In other sports, certain requirements are required to play that specific sport. For basketball, you must be tall, and in rugby, you must be able to lift weights, etc. In football, the size of your body doesn't matter, you have to have a good physique, and that's the only requirement. Various footballers are muscular, tall, short, thin, muscular, etc.

All genders can participate in the sport. Women can also participate in this sport just like men. Women can also play in well-known football leagues around the world.

The lack of circumstances to play soccer is why everyone plays this wonderful game more intensely and energetically.

4. Excellent career opportunities for children

Every soccer player's dream is to be a professional footballer at some point in their lifetime. But, there are many those who are seriously thinking about soccer as a possible career choice.

Every teenager has a different dream in their life. One would like to be a doctor, engineer or musician, actor and sportsperson, and so on. An entry into the world of football is an excellent opportunity for young people. Being a footballer is one of the most well-known jobs in the world of sports. It could be a more popular career option. However, it needs to be more widespread in certain countries.

It is a rewarding profession that gives players various opportunities during their soccer journey. They encounter new coaches, players, and coaches from their teams, gain experience and improve their skills. A football player can gain experience traveling because the game is played in various states and, occasionally, in different countries. Regarding the financial aspect, footballers earn an excellent amount of money depending on the club they play for and how skilled they are in their abilities.

5. Fans of their favorite football team and player

Football is for everyone as a way of life; when they become an avid supporters of a certain team, they remain loyal to their preferred team for the end of their lives. It is true that in European and South American countries, people are obsessed with football. Their young football players don't have the opportunity to pick their preferred team because their parents already love and support one team. They already have bought their team support team's jersey; therefore, when they look up to their parents, the young child also begins to follow a particular team and is soccer fan alongside their parents. The reason soccer is popular is due to its history.

Many soccer fans are also obsessed with their favorite player, and they consider their player of choice as God. They begin watching every match of their favorite player and will follow their interviews and football videos on YouTube. They become so emotionally connected that when their player of choice is victorious, they rejoice and party with their loved ones and their families. They are devastated and cry when their favorite player loses a game. This is a wonderful aspect of the sport, which is why it has become more well-known worldwide

[jrueships]

Kyle/jimmy not a valid ship? [sad jimmy noises]

STFU JIMMY LMFAO 😭😭😭