Sports
US Olympic medalists MyKayla Skinner and Nancy Hogsead join activist sportswear brand XX-XY Athletics
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EXCLUSIVE: Former U.S. women’s Olympians MyKayla Skinner and Nancy Hogshead have signed with the activist sportswear brand XX-XY Athletics, aligning themselves with the mission to advocate for the protection of women’s sports from biological male transgender athletes.
Skinner, who won silver in vault at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, spoke up about the issue earlier this year, and is now taking a harder stance.
“I am excited to partner with [XX-XY Athletics founder] Jennifer Sey and her pro-woman XX-XY Athletics to tell my story as an athlete and a woman,” Skiner told Fox News Digital.
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Mykayla Skinner and Simone Biles of Team United States pose for a photo during Women’s Podium Training ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Gymnastics Centre on July 22, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
“Finding my voice has been hard — there’s no training for that. But every female athlete should find and use hers. No one trains you for moral courage or unwavering positivity — that’s a different kind of journey. I’m going to share that too. Why? To use my platform to be a positive role model for female athletes. But really, this is for my daughter.”
Skinner joins the brand after previously speaking out against her former teammate Simone Biles back in June.
After Biles ignited a social media feud with fomer NCAA swimmer and OutKick host Riley Gaines for posting about a trans softball pitcher who won a Minnesota girls’ state title, Skinner was quick to side with Gaines publicly. Skinner now joins the same brand championed by Gaines, who was XX-XY Athletics’ first brand ambassador when it launched in 2024.
“As an athlete who has dedicated years to a sport, I’ve always believed that true competition should elevate us — not diminish others. That’s why it’s deeply troubling to see Simone Biles publicly label a fellow female athlete a ‘sore loser’ — simply for expressing valid concerns about fairness in women’s sports,” Skinner said in a June statement.
“I commend and appreciate Riley Gaines for having the courage to speak up. Throughout my own career, I endured being belittled, dismissed and ostracized behind the scenes by Simone… It’s one thing to disagree. It’s another to use your platform to bully and demean… We should be lifting each other up — not tearing one another down for speaking hard truths.”
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Meanwhile, Hogshead, a three-time Olympic gold medalist and silver medalist, is the founder of Champion Women and the Women’s Sports Policy Working Group. She has authored a petition to protect the women’s category with over 500 signatures.
Nancy Hogshead-Makar, Women’s Sports Foundation senior director of advocacy, attends the 40 For 40 Event, 40 Years of Title IX, 40 Women Who Have Made an Impact, at the JW Marriott Hotel in Washington, D.C., on June 21, 2012. (Larry Busacca/Getty Images for WICT)
Now, Hogshead joins XX-XY Athletics as the brand’s first Olympic gold medal brand ambassador.
“Only strict eligibility standards for girls’ and women’s sports can guarantee fair, safe and respectful competition for us,” Hogshead told Fox News Digital. “More than 500 Olympians & Paralympians are playing it forward by signed Champion Women’s petition; they understand the dedication required to succeed and firmly support future generations of athletes by advocating for a level playing field for all.”
The two medalists headline the brand’s new campaign, “The Gold Medal Collection.” The campaign features other Team USA talent, including Taekwondo athlete Jaycee Bassett, triathlete Shannon Grady and swimmer Réka György.
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Former Olympic gymnast MyKayla Skinner with Simone Biles (left) and former Olympic swimmer Nancy Hogshead (right). (Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty Images, Tony Duffy/Allsport/Getty Images)
“As an athlete training to be the best in the world, I look up to women like Nancy and MyKayla, who’ve paved the way,” Bassett told Fox News Digital.
“But I also know it’s on my generation to speak up and protect the path. Every hour I’ve spent training has been to test myself against the best female athletes in the world. If I’m ever asked to compete against a male, I’ll refuse. The integrity of competition relies on a level playing field for every female athlete that invests her time, dedication and sacrifice in her pursuit of excellence.”
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Sports
Former South Carolina QB Stephen Garcia changes his approach on mental health amid cancer battle
Former South Carolina quarterback Stephen Garcia is currently battling for his life after being diagnosed with stage 4 colorectal cancer.
The diagnosis came after noticing certain abnormalities, but the hard-nosed former athlete thought he could figure out the issues on his own without a visit to the doctors. His wife wasn’t comfortable with that plan from the quarterback, who used to take snaps for a Steve Spurrier-led offense led offense in Columbia.
Reluctantly, Garcia went in for a colonoscopy where doctors discovered the cancer, and that it had been growing for a number of years.
Unfortunately, Stephen wasn’t fully grasping the news when first given, due to him still being somewhat groggy from sedation.
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Stephen Garcia of the South Carolina Gamecocks looks to pass against the Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Ga., on Sept. 10, 2011. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
But, when it was finally explained to him how serious this situation was, reality set in pretty quickly.
Obviously, there’s nothing simple about hearing the word ‘cancer,’ no matter which stage or form you are dealing with. It will humble you quickly, with the grim outlook overtaking the mind.
And while this process to fight the disease will be tough, filled with many obstacles, Garcia was most worried about his family.
While his older son understands the magnitude, he has yet to fully inform his youngest daughter, which led to the former Gamecock shedding a few tears while discussing the situation with OutKick on Friday morning.
Former Gamecock has changed his tune amid battle with cancer
In the past, Stephen Garcia was not one to jump aboard the mental health awareness train, looking at it as someone who was not strong enough to handle the circumstances surrounding whatever battle they were facing.
But, that’s the football side of Garcia, and he was the first to admit that his mindset had changed because of the stigma surrounding people, most importantly men, not feeling comfortable enough to discuss their struggles.
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This problem has led to many downfalls, or problems that arise by not talking to others about what they are going through in the moments of trials and tribulations.
For Stephen, that has all changed.
“In years past, I thought mental health was an absolute joke, just to be completely frank with you,” Garcia told OutKick. “I was like, if you gotta have some mental toughness, I played for Coach Spurrier so I had to have some mental toughness to deal with him. But, I was also extremely hard headed. It is huge. There’s gonna be days when you’re not gonna walk to talk with anybody, days you wanna give up, you gotta stay mentally tough. This whole process has opened my eyes to a whole different deal.
“People can change. I was against the whole mental health thing, I thought it was stupid. But, it’s changed my opinion, my outlook on life in general, and I encourage everyone to speak it up. I’ve had so many people reach out to say if you need to talk, reach out to me. Everyone said the same thing that you have to be mentally in it. If you are positive mentally, you’re going to get through it. If you’re feeling down in the dumps, figure out a way to get positive. It’s no joke, you are where your minds at.”
South Carolina quarterback Stephen Garcia throws a pass against Kentucky in the third quarter at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, S.C., on Oct. 3, 2009. South Carolina defeated Kentucky 28-26. (Dale Zanine/USA TODAY Sports)
Outreach has been overwhelming, with a long battle ahead
After going through his first round of chemotherapy this week, Garcia is coming to terms with the battle he faces, though he’s keeping a positive outlook for the sake of himself and his family. He will continue training athletes, when his body allows, and using his platform to encourage others to take their health seriously.
If it weren’t for his wife pushing him into getting examined, who knows how long this could’ve gone before his cancer was noticed. In the meantime, the support system has been overwhelming, as Garcia described while choking back tears.
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Stephen Garcia of the South Carolina Gamecocks drops back to pass against the East Carolina Pirates at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C., on Sept. 3, 2011. (Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
Whether it’s the Clemson football team, or Dabo Swinney himself, and the thousands of people who have reached out over the past few days, it’s not lost on the former quarterback how much the support has meant for his own sanity during uncertain times.
For now, Stephen Garcia is taking his battle with cancer one day at a time. But, he’s also got college football fans rooting for him to beat this terrible disease.
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Kansas star Darryn Peterson is set to likely be a top-five pick in this summer’s NBA Draft, but there was a time a few months ago he did not think that day would come.
Peterson missed 11 games this season and had his time cut short in several others due to a series of cramping issues, but the worst one came before the season even started.
Peterson told ESPN recently that in September, he was taken to a hospital from a practice with severe cramping throughout his entire body.
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Kansas Jayhawks guard Darryn Peterson controls the ball against St. John’s Red Storm guard Oziyah Sellers in the second half of a second-round men’s NCAA Tournament game at Viejas Arena in San Diego, California, on March 22, 2026. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
“I made it to the training room and just started begging them to call 911. They were trying to get a vein to get me the IV, get me back hydrated. But I was cramping so hard they couldn’t get a vein,” Peterson said.
“I thought I was going to die on the training table that day.”
After months of searching for answers, Peterson said that high doses of creatine resulted in the cramping.
Creatine, used to increase muscle size, is perhaps the most studied supplement on the market and has numerous benefits. But for Peterson, it prompted a scary situation.
“I’d never taken it before [going to college]. But after the season I took two weeks off and they did tests which showed my baseline level was already high. So, they said when I dosed, it must’ve made the levels unsafe,” he said.
Kansas Jayhawks guard Darryn Peterson drives with the ball against Iowa State Cyclones forward Dominykas Pleta during the second half of the Big 12 basketball game on Feb. 14, 2026, at Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa. (Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
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“It kind of put me in a tizzy because I didn’t know what was causing it. Nothing has ever been wrong with me before. Basketball is my life. What I love to do. But something was going on and I couldn’t figure it out.”
Peterson no longer takes creatine and has not had any issues since. He even played at least 30 minutes in eight of Kansas’ last nine games this past season.
Peterson’s lack of play, of course, drew criticism, but he did all he could to play.
“They saw I was in rehab every day before practice, after practice. Get massages. Trying all types of stuff. Carb loading because they thought I didn’t have glucose or something. Electrolytes. Liquid IV, LMNT. I changed my diet. I meal-prepped. Everything I could think of,” he said.
Kansas Jayhawks guard Darryn Peterson jogs back after making a three-pointer against Houston Cougars inside Allen Fieldhouse on Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. (Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
Head coach Bill Self even decided that playing off-ball would keep him from overexerting himself, which could potentially lead to more cramping.
Peterson averaged 20.2 points per game and is widely expected to be one of the first names off the board next month.
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Shaheen Shah Afridi achieved a major World Test Championship milestone on the opening day of the first Test against Bangladesh at Dhaka’s Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Friday.
The left-arm fast bowler etched his name into the record books by becoming the first Pakistani bowler to complete 100 wickets in ICC World Test Championship history.
Afridi reached the landmark after dismissing Bangladesh opener Mahmudul Hasan Joy during the opening day’s play.
With this achievement, the 26-year-old also became only the 19th bowler overall to claim 100 wickets in the World Test Championship (WTC), further cementing his position as Pakistan’s leading wicket-taker in the competition.
Most wickets for Pakistan in ICC World Test Championship
Shaheen Afridi – 100*
Noman Ali – 89
Sajid Khan – 63
Naseem Shah – 60
Abrar Ahmed – 46
Yasir Shah – 41
Hasan Ali – 35
Mohammad Abbas – 34
Meanwhile, a century from skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto and a half-century by Mominul Haque put Bangladesh in control on the opening day of the first Test.
After being asked to bat first, the hosts ended the day at 301-4 in 85 overs with Mushfiqur Rahim unbeaten on 48 runs coming off 104 deliveries featuring six fours while Litton Das scored eight off 35 balls.
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