Australian National Rugby League’s (NRL) the Gold Coast Titans have defended their decision to use a former porn star as a trainer for their under-20 players.
American Kortney Olson, the 31-year-old wife of Titans chief executive David May, joined the club two weeks ago in a strength-and-conditioning volunteer’s role.
Olson is a personal trainer and bodybuilding competitor.
May sent an e-mail late on Friday to all Titans staff explaining his wife’s past and why he believes she is fit to be at the club, the Gold Coast Bulletin reported, but since the news became public, several staff have reportedly voiced concern about whether she should be involved with the side’s youth, and there have been calls for her and May to be sacked.
May said he was standing by his wife and was prepared to answer accusations of nepotism.
“It would be nepotism if she was employed and getting paid, but she’s a volunteer. If anybody is unhappy with it, the NRL, our fans, players or sponsors, I will deal with it,” May told the newspaper.
“She has battled some of the most vicious and difficult personal demons — including rape, drug and alcohol abuse, and addiction — and during a period which was very difficult for a young woman, Kortney did some things which perhaps in hindsight she wouldn’t have done now,” he said. “Everyone does things they aren’t proud of, but she has put it behind her. I am proud of Kortney.”
The NRL said it was not a matter where it should intervene.
“Our understanding is that she is not an employee of the club and has no official capacity beyond volunteering in an area where she has some expertise,” a spokesman said.
Marta Kostyuk’s maiden WTA 1000 title in Madrid came on Saturday thanks to her power, poise and a pair of unexpected lucky shorts. The world No. 23 beat eighth-ranked Mirra Andreeva 6-3, 7-5 in under 90 minutes to secure the most prestigious trophy of her career, her third professional singles title and second in less than a month after Rouen. Yet as the 23-year-old Ukrainian posed for photographs at the Caja Magica, it was not just the silverware that caught the eye. Held alongside her team and her two dogs, Kostyuk showed off a piece of black men’s underwear, prompting
Throwing more than US$5 billion at a divisive new tour and walking away after five seasons does not look like good business, but LIV Golf was not all bad news for Saudi Arabia. Oil-funded LIV, which poached top stars and sent golf’s establishment into a tailspin, helped push the conservative kingdom into global view — one of its key aims, experts said. The exit, confirmed on Thursday after weeks of speculation, does not signal a flight of Saudi money from sport, even after the Middle East war that sparked Iranian attacks around the Gulf, they said. “Saudi Arabia is not
Lin Yun-ju on Thursday handed Taiwan two key victories as they advanced to the semi-finals of the ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals in London. The Taiwan men’s table tennis team beat Sweden 3-2 in five singles matches. The 24-year-old Lin, Taiwan’s top-ranked player at world No. 7 and nicknamed the “Silent Assassin,” opened the tie by defeating world No. 2 Truls Moregard 3-0 (11-8, 11-9, 13-11) before clinching the deciding fifth match with a 3-0 (11-8, 11-9, 11-5) win over Anton Kallberg to hand his team the overall victory. Kuo Guan-hong put Taiwan up 2-0 with a 3-2 (4-11, 11-8, 8-11,
Arsenal stormed six points clear at the top of the English Premier League as Bukayo Saka and Viktor Gyokeres put Fulham to the sword in a 3-0 win, while West Ham United’s defeat at Brentford offered Tottenham Hotspur a lifeline in the battle for survival. The Gunners have stumbled toward the finish line in their quest for a first league title in 22 years, blowing a sizeable lead over Manchester City in a series of nervous displays. However, the return of Saka, making his first start in six weeks, freed up Mikel Arteta’s men in a dominant performance that shrugged
RSS