Vancouver city councillors have voted to approve the park board’s request for an additional $22.5 million in funding to renovate the Vancouver Aquatic Centre, bringing the price tag for the controversial project to $175 million.

The decision came Wednesday night after several speakers, including multiple children, shared their opposition to replacing the existing 50-metre, Olympic-sized pool with a new 25-metre one, citing impacts to competitive swim training.

After considering the potential impacts of a delay and the building’s seismic safety, councillors voted 10-2 in favour of approving the funding. Coun. Peter Meiszner was absent, and Coun. Peter Fry abstained from voting due to a conflict of interest.

“We’re kinda stuck between a rock and a hard place right now,” said Coun. Rebecca Bligh after the vote.

The aging Vancouver Aquatic Centre made headlines in March 2022 after a large piece of the building’s facade fell off.

The centre has served as a premier sporting venue in Vancouver’s densely populated West End since it opened in 1974, drawing swimmers, synchronized swimming teams, water polo players and divers for training and competitions.

Recently, however, the pool has been described as being at “the end of its functional lifespan.”

A majority of voters in the 2022 municipal election supported the aquatic centre’s renewal, but the first mention of a smaller 25-metre pool didn’t come until February of this year — revealed in the design proposal brought forward by city staff — sparking outcry from the swimming community.

Park board staff said it wasn’t feasible to deliver a 50-metre pool within the existing building footprint while also meeting industry standards for maintenance and accessibility.

The Vancouver Park Board approved the design the following month, subject to city council agreeing to an additional $22.5 million for the project — a request swimming advocates asked city council to reject, earlier this week.

During the Wednesday meeting, one speaker said the park board has “lost the trust and confidence of the people of Vancouver and especially the swimming community.”

“No one voted for a lazy river and a 1,300-square-foot hot tub,” said resident Scott Lear.

“Vancouver just needs a 50-metre pool, it doesn’t need a fancy designed building. It needs something functional first, and form second,” he said.

WATCH | Dozens speak out against aquatic centre proposal:

One 10-year-old, Georgia Neill, who trains with the Canadian Dolphin Swim Club at the aquatic centre, appealed to councillors to “please think of other ways to keep our 50-metre pool, not for me or my teammates, but for all the people who signed the petition to say this is not what we want in Vancouver.”

Another young swimmer, Geoffrey Mu, said relocating the club and training to the Hillcrest Aquatic Centre, as park board staff have recommended, would make it difficult to attend practice, or force other members to consider joining another swim club.

“If you support VAC’s plan to change our 50-metre pool, you’ll be taking away the future of many young swimmers including me,” said the 12-year-old.

WATCH | 50-metre pool not feasible, staff report says:

Addressing the speakers after the vote, Bligh said she’s not in favour of doing away with a 50-metre pool, but that she understands the need to upgrade the aquatic centre.

She thanked speakers for their advocacy and acknowledged their concerns.

“This is an impossible decision for me on the topic…. We have to get to a better solution here,” Bligh said.

“I’m not sure we’re going to find it today, but I’m absolutely in your corner for what you shared and what you brought to the conversation today.”

The Vancouver Aquatic Centre is scheduled to close for the renovations in 2026 and reopen sometime in 2029.

Six Lake County High School senior athletes will be taking their sport to the next level and competing in college during the 2025-2026 school year. A signing day was held on Wednesday, June 4 to celebrate these athletes, their accomplishment, and the transition.

In the last 20 years, very few Lake County athletes continued their sports in college. Two years ago, two athletes moved on to collegiate Nordic skiing and cross country running. Last year, LCHS had three athletes sign with colleges in three different sports – volleyball, Nordic skiing and cross country track & field. Within this current class, the seniors will be participating in four different sports and an activity.

Isaiah Martinez, who led LCHS’ basketball team in many categories including scoring, is headed to Ottawa University in Kansas to join the Braves’ men’s basketball team. 

Amara Olsen, who earned a state pole vault medal this spring, will be attending Colorado College on a pole vault scholarship. 

Her twin, Indigo Olsen has been part of the state champion and state runner-up LCHS women’s cross-country teams through her four years of high school. She was also a member of the school record 4×800-meter relay team. Indigo will continue her running on the cross country and track and field teams at Smith College, a private liberal arts women’s college in Massachusetts.

Susie Bullock helped the LCHS Nordic team win the first CHSAA women’s team championship this winter. She was also Lake County’s lone representative at All-State choir in January. In August, Susie is off to Western Colorado University, where she will join the Nordic ski team and pursue instrumental and vocal music. 

Completing the other twin pair, Ella Bullock has committed to Williams College in Massachusetts for Nordic skiing. Ella was a two-time CHSAA state champion her sophomore year in high school. She’s been a member of Colorado’s junior national Nordic ski team throughout high school. 

Matthew Wilson, Lake County’s two-time state silver medalist and current pole vault school record holder, will continue his vaulting career at the Division III level at Asbury University in Kentucky.

“Each of these athletes has been a significant member of our programs at Lake County High School. They will be greatly missed, but we’re so proud of them and are eager to hear about what they will accomplish at the collegiate level,” said athletic/activities director Amy Peters.

CANYON, Texas – West Texas A&M’s Luke Holcombe and Antonella Periotti Omisolo earned Lone Star Conference accolades on Thursday morning as they pair were named recipients of the league’s annual Scholar-Athlete Award.
 
Holcombe, the LSC Academic Outdoor Athlete of the Year, earned multiple LSC Commissioner’s Honor Roll awards. Competing in throwing events – shot put, discus and hammer throw – Holcombe is a three-time USTFCCCA All-Region honoree. He placed second in the hammer throw and third in shot put at the 2025 LSC Outdoor Track and Field Championships and qualified for his second Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships in shot put with a 17.89 meters toss.
 
Periotti Omisolo claimed the NCAA Women’s Elite 90 Award at the DII Women’s Golf Championships in Henderson, Nevada. The Elite 90 award honors the exceptional achievements of student-athletes. The prestigious accolade is given to those who have not only excelled at a national championship level in their sport but have also achieved the highest academic standards among their peers. The Elite 90 is proudly awarded to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA at the finals site for each of the NCAA’s 90 championships.
 

EUGENE, Ore. – Duquesne’s Louie Liberatore earned a bronze medal in the men’s javelin on Thursday to headline three Dukes competing at the USA Track & Field U20 Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.

Liberatore recorded a mark of 61.84 meters (202 feet, 10 inches) on his sixth and final attempt to secure third place. It was the second-longest throw of his collegiate career and marked his third consecutive meet with a throw over 200 feet. The rising sophomore recently became the first Duke to qualify for and compete in the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in the men’s javelin.

Duquesne’s Rose Kuchera (triple jump) is scheduled to compete at 7:30 p.m. ET Thursday, while Colm Matheney is participating in the two-day decathlon, which began Thursday and concludes Friday.

This story will be updated with results.

FOLLOW THE DUKES 
Follow Duquesne Track and Field online at GoDuquesne.com, as well as on X, Instagram, and Facebook (@DuqXCTF). 
 

TEHRAN – The Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) launched of the fifteenth wave of Operation True Promise III on Thursday afternoon, marking a new phase in their ongoing military campaign. 

This latest escalation involves coordinated missile and drone attacks targeting military sites and facilities associated with the military industry in Haifa and Tel Aviv in the occupied territories.

According to official sources, the latest phase of this operation included over 100 combat and martyrdom (suicide) drones focusing primarily on anti-missile defense systems in both cities. The IRGC emphasizes that these actions are part of a broader strategy to intensify missile strikes against military and industrial targets, aiming to exert maximum impact.

The situation remains tense as the Zionist regime continues to target Iranian cities, threatening the civilian lives in provinces across Iran.

The Health Ministry in Iran has reported that at least 224 people have lost their lives in the brutal strikes by the Zionist regime.

ATHENS, Ga. — University of Georgia junior sprinter Aaliyah Butler has been named the winner of the Honda Sport Award for Track & Field, as revealed by The Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA) Thursday.
 
Butler joins Kendell Williams (2017) as the only two Bulldogs to ever receive this honor.  Butler gives the Southeastern Conference four straight winners and six winners out of the last eight years.
 
Since Georgia standout Dasha Vidmanova has already been awarded the Honda Sport Award for Women’s Tennis for the 2024-25 academic year, this gives the Bulldogs’ four instances of having two winners from different sports in a year (Karra Lynn Joyce, swimming; Courtney Kupets, gymnastics – 2006-07; Kim Arnold, gymnastics; Marissa Catlin, tennis – 1997-98; Cindy Schreyer, golf; Lisa Spain, tennis – 1983-84).
 
The Honda Sport Award has been presented annually by the CWSA for the past 49 years, recognizing the top women athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports and symbolizing “the best of the best in collegiate athletics.”  The recipient of the sport award is now a finalist for the prestigious Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and the 2025 Honda Cup, which will be presented during the live broadcast of the Collegiate Women Sports Awards Presented by Honda on June 30, at 7 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
 
Butler was chosen by administrators from over 1,000 NCAA member schools.  Each NCAA member institution has a vote. 
 
“I am so honored to receive this award and have my name mentioned with winners of the past, including the great Bulldog Kendell Williams,” Butler said.  “This helps show me the hard work and dedication that I’ve put in is paying off. I want to thank all involved for making me this year’s honoree, and I cannot wait to share this experience with the award winners from the other sports.”
 

Butler, hailing from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., delivered a standout 2025 season, headlined by her individual national title in the 400-meter dash at last week’s NCAA Outdoor Championships.  Her winning time of 49.26 not only set a new school record, but also marked the fifth-fastest performance in collegiate history.  Butler also anchored Georgia’s 4x400m relay to victory, securing the program’s first-ever national title in the event and helping propel the Bulldogs to their first NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championship.
 
Throughout the season, the junior dominated the SEC, sweeping both the indoor and outdoor 400m titles.  Her consistent excellence earned her four NCAA First Team All-America honors in 2025 alone, bringing her career total to 11 All-America accolades.  A fixture on the Bowerman Watch List with seven appearances, she also excelled academically as a member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll.
 
A 2024 Olympic gold medalist as part of Team USA’s 4x400m relay squad, Butler continues to affirm her place among the elite in collegiate and international track and field.
 

“What an outstanding accomplishment for such a well-deserving young woman,” Georgia Director of Track & Field Caryl Smith Gilbert said.  “Aaliyah is a unique talent.  She has superior talent and teams that with an elite work ethic.  Aaliyah doesn’t say much, but her actions on the track, in the classroom and in the rest of her life reflect what sort of student-athlete and person she is becoming during this journey in Athens.  She and I, along with the rest of the University of Georgia family, understand what an immense honor this is, and are super appreciative of the recognition.”
 
The CWSA, now in its 49th year, celebrates the nation’s top NCAA women athletes for their excellence in athletics, leadership, academics, and community service.  Since its partnership began in 1986, Honda has provided more than $3.4 million in institutional grants to the universities of award winners and nominees, supporting the growth and success of women’s athletics programs.
 
About Honda Corporate Social Responsibility and the Honda USA Foundation 
For more than 65 years in the U.S., Honda has been committed to making positive contributions to the communities where its associates live and work.  The company’s mission is to create products and services that help people fulfill their life’s potential, while conducting business in a sustainable manner and fostering an inclusive workplace.  Advancing its corporate social responsibility, Honda and the Honda USA Foundation support this direction through giving focused on education, the environment, mobility, traffic safety, and community.  
 
Learn more at http://csr.honda.com/.