Twilight News Edition 88
Edition 88, 2nd November 2021
SHORTS FOR BIKINIS: ‘SEXIST’ HANDBALL UNIFORM REGULATIONS CHANGED!
By Riyaa Palan
Do you remember the incident from the Tokyo Games 2020 when the Norwegian women’s beach handball team was fined for wearing shorts in a match against Spain?
At the time, the coach of the team, Eskil Berg Andreassen, had told CNN that the uniform regulations could demotivate women from playing the sport, and singer-songwriter Pink slammed the regulations as “sexist”, also offering to pay the fine on behalf of the Norwegian team.
A change.org petition had also been made, demanding for the fine to be dropped and for women to be allowed to compete in shorts; it gained more than 60,000 signatures. Meanwhile, sports ministers from Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Sweden called on the IHF to review it’s uniform guidelines.
But even as so many individuals responded, what did the authorities do?
Nothing, really.
However, following severe backlash for its much-criticized uniform regulations, the International Handball Federation has finally acted by permitting female players to wear shorts instead of bikini bottoms. The new uniform regulations state that “female athletes must wear short tight pants with a close fit” and also include the option of tank tops for women rather than the usual crop tops. Male players have also been instructed to wear tank tops and shorts but there has been no mention of the “tight-fitting” factor like in the women’s revised regulations.
"With those bikinis, we were all the time checking if it's in the right place. We were focusing on other things than the sport -- and that's not something we want," Julie Aspelund Berg, a defender from Norway's beach handball team, previously told CNN.
"We just want to be treated at the same level as the guys." And so they will be, now that the policies have been turned over.
Such revolutionary changes are important for improving the status of women in society. They not only benefit women of the present but also of the future!
The New iPhones- Is There Really A Difference?
By Ahana Barthwal
Just like the general public, Apple’s very own co-founder, Steve Wozniak, was unable to distinguish the iPhone 13 from the iPhone 12, claiming that he could not spot any differences. “I got the new iPhone; I can’t tell the difference really. The software that’s in it applies to older iPhones, I presume,” told Wozniak to Yahoo News.
The latest iPhone lineup includes iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini, both of which were released in September of this year. “In technology it’s like you always want to kind of keep up with the newest and sometimes you are five years behind, seven years behind, you know, and it’s still working for you and it’s just like that’s where the sales come from,” Wozniak added.
Furthermore, he claimed to still be using the 2018 iPhone 8 model with a display of just 4.7 inches, a device many would consider to be “outdated”.
“I would rather wait and watch that one. I’m happy with my iPhone 8 which is the same as the iPhone 7, which is the same as the iPhone 6, to me." This just reinstates the fact that Apple is just a big name, and that a newer product does not make for a better one.
So the next time someone calls you out for still using that iPhone 8 from 2018, make sure to tell them about this incident (and where you heard about it, of course).