The contrast was first highlighted by Stanford athletic performance coach Ali Kershner, who posted two photos on Instagram. One photo, according to Kershner, was the men’s setup showing benches and other types of weight training equipment. The other photo of the women’s setup shows a set of free weights and yoga mats.
In his post, Kershner included the grips of the NCAA, NCAA and March Madness women’s basketball, saying, “This needs to be resolved.”
“These women want and deserve the same opportunities,” Kershner wrote. “Not only that – three weeks in a bubble and no access to DBs over 30 until sweet 16? In a year defined by a fight for equality, this is a chance to have a conversation and to improve. “
Hours after Kershner’s post, NCAA Women’s Basketball Vice President Lynn Holzman acknowledged that “some of the facilities that teams would typically have access to were not as available in the controlled environment.”
She added in her statement: “Part of this is due to the limited space and the original plan was to expand the training area once the additional space becomes available later in the tournament.”
Sedona Prince of the Oregon Ducks disputed that there was “limited space” and posted a video showing all “the extra space”. “If you are not upset with this problem, then you are part of it,” she added.
Several WNBA and NBA players tweeted their support after the photos were posted.
The NCAA said it was “actively working to improve existing resources in practice courts, including additional weight training equipment.”
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