Sky News Laurel Hubbard article

[TheHandmadeTails]

news.sky.com/story/laurel-hubbard-transgender-weightlifter-is-set-to-make-history-at-tokyo-olympics-but-does-she-have-unfair-advantage-12359559

I thought this seemed reasonably balanced (compared to some). It also mentions that Hubbard was charged with careless driving causing injury after an incident in 2018 and that news outlet Stuff successfully fought to overturn restrictions preventing reporting of the case. Why would there be restrictions? That sounds a bit sinister but I don’t know this area - can anyone shine a light?

I just posted that on a couple of threads.

It seems that Harper is now quite clear that male athletes retain their physical advantages even after transition and is not trying to cloak that fact in anyway.

However, the fact that they equate those advantages to the same as left handed tennis players and all the other trope comparisons is still bonkers.

Not sure when Harper will finally admit that they were wrong and that they have to accept responsibility for their n=8 study and the impacts on female sports around the world.

Here are some links about those impacts. Well, just the latest, there are quite a few threads where this study has been discussed.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/4279311-Coach-Linda-Blade-The-End-of-Womens-Sport-Plus-N-8-website

nequals8.com

Judge Bernadette Farnan suppressed her name until September 30 to help Hubbard avoid the distress of dealing with social media comment while she trained for Olympic qualifying events. Stuff appealed and Hubbard sought permanent suppression.

The High Court this week overturned the suppression orders ending Hubbard's nine month battle to keep her name secret.

Justice Gerald Nation said Judge Farnan had made a number of errors and Hubbard's potential distress did not meet the legal test for suppression.

www.stuff.co.nz/national/114218682/victims-of-laurel-hubbard-crash-appalled-at-sentence-and-suppression

Why would there be restrictions? That sounds a bit sinister but I don’t know this area - can anyone shine a light?

It was reported that the judge suppressed Hubbard's name at the time (October 2018) to spare Hubbard from dealing with social media comments during training for Olympic qualifiers.

Nine months later a High Court judge ruled that the original judge had made a number of errors and Hubbard's potential distress did not meet the legal test for suppression.

The couple that were injured (one was seriously hurt) were reported as unhappy with both the suppression and the lenient sentence given to Hubbard for careless driving causing injury (discharged without conviction, ordered to pay the couple about $13,000, and was disqualified from driving for one month).

Hubbard's father is a millionaire, also.

These are two interesting paragraphs to compare.

Before transitioning to female, Hubbard took part in male weightlifting competitions and set a junior national record in 1998, lifting 300kgs in the M105+ division.

She won three events in Australia in 2017, including the gold medal at the Australian International in the heaviest women's division, lifting a total of 268kg.

@ScreamingMeMe

Hubbard's father is a millionaire, also.

Isn't he also involved at a high level in decision making in weightlifting in NZ?

I heard that somewhere but it could be conjecture. I know Dick Hubbard was a mayor of Auckland, a prominent support of Labour and a conservationist.

I had heard that too OhHoly but I have not been able to verify it but I only spent a few minutes on it.

From the Stuff article linked above:

" Hubbard, who is the daughter of cereal magnate Dick Hubbard, pleaded guilty in January this year. At her sentencing in February, she was discharged without conviction, ordered to pay the couple about $13,000, and was disqualified from driving for one month. "

The holidaying couple had long hospital stays in NZ.

Hubbard being an executive officer at Olympic Weightlifting New Zealand (which now appear to be Weightlifting New Zealand) is mentioned here, but not sure if that's verified?

www.nzherald.co.nz/northland-age/news/letter-how-is-this-contest-fair/5HKWNXI274LWVQBIJ3AZJ7U6GI/

Garry was a PE teacher and Dick Hubbard was into outdoorsy education.

It's hardly conclusive proof but it's possibly they mixed in the same circles and there could be some history. Who knows. It would be interesting to know what you find.

Half the time this sort of thing is buried in some company or organisation accounts, someone is a non-Exec director for the others one's business or something like that.

Bit if a tangent but I'm wondering what Laurel's sibling makes of it all. I thought Hubbard was an only child but apparently not.

• same circles in Auckland.

(Like I say hardly conclusive proof)