BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — More than 20 years after winning an unlikely gold medal in short track speedskating at the Salt Lake City Olympics, Steven Bradbury is back in the news for another good reason.
Bradbury has been presented with a bravery award by the Queensland state governor for rescuing four teenagers from rough seas at a beach at Caloundra, an hour north of the capital Brisbane, in March of last year.
In 2002, Bradbury became known as the “accidental hero” after winning Australia's first Winter Olympics gold medal.
Bradbury was well off the pace in the 1,000-meter race when all four of his competitors crashed out at the final corner while jostling for the gold medal. That allowed Bradbury, who was about 15 meters behind, to avoid the pile-up and glide through to win the final.
Australian Olympic Committee President Ian Chesterman on Wednesday said Bradbury’s courage and quick thinking saved lives last year.
“The fact that Steven acted quickly, calmly and with such courage is so impressive. He richly deserves this recognition," Chesterman said of the bravery award. "We have always admired Steven for the way he has made history on the ice, but his actions last year reflect an incredible achievement — saving four young lives."
Bradbury, now 50, was teaching his son to ride a surfboard when he spotted a teenage girl in trouble. He sent his son to alert lifeguards while he paddled to the young woman, who he returned to the beach before paddling out again to assist three other teenagers in trouble.
"I don’t feel like a bravery award is necessary, but I am happy to accept it and feel pretty proud about it,” Bradbury told Australian Associated Press on Wednesday. “The feeling of knowing that you have saved people’s lives is something I will take to my grave.”
AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports
FILE - Steven Bradbury Australia's surprise gold medalist in 1000 metres short track speed skating event displays his medal at a press conference in Salt Lake City, Sunday, Feb. 17, 2002. Bradbury has been presented with a bravery award by the Queensland state governor in Brisbane for rescuing four teenagers from rough seas at a beach at Caloundra north of Brisbane in March of last year. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, File)
FILE - Steven Bradbury of Australia crosses the finish line to win the men's 1,000-meter short-track speed skating race at the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah, Saturday, Feb. 16, 2002. Bradbury has been presented with a bravery award by the Queensland state governor in Brisbane for rescuing four teenagers from rough seas at a beach at Caloundra north of Brisbane in March of last year. (AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau, File)
PHOENIX (AP) — A judge on Friday rejected an effort by GOP lawmakers to use the term “unborn human being” to refer to a fetus in the pamphlet that Arizona voters will use to weigh a ballot measure that would expand abortion access in the state.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Christopher Whitten said the wording the legislative council suggested is “packed with emotion and partisan meaning” and asked for what he called more “neutral” language. The measure aims to expand abortion access from 15 weeks to 24 weeks – the point at which a fetus can survive outside the womb.
It would allow exemptions to save the woman’s life or to protect her physical or mental health. It would also prevent the state from adopting or enforcing laws that would forbid access to the procedure.
Arizona House Speaker Ben Toma, who is a co-chair of the legislative council, said the group will appeal the court’s decision to the state Supreme Court.
“The ruling is just plain wrong and clearly partisan,” said Toma, a Republican.
The State Supreme Court has until Aug. 27 to rule on the appeal for the language to be changed.
Aaron Thacker, communications director for Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, noted that the final decision on the ballot itself remains in the air.
“There’s still a lot of scenarios at play," he said. "Even after the secretary certifies the signatures, the courts have to decide if counties can put it on the ballot or not."
Arizona for Abortion Access, the organization leading the ballot measure campaign, sued the council earlier this month over the suggested language and advocated for the term “fetus,” which the council rejected.
Attorney General Kris Mayes wrote in a motion to submit an amicus brief that “fetus" and “pregnancy” are both neutral terms that the council could adopt.
“It’s incredibly important to us that Arizona voters get to learn more about and weigh our measure in objective and accurate terminology,” said Dawn Penich, communications director for the abortion access group.
Democrats have centered abortion rights in their campaigns in this year’s elections. Organizers in five other states have also proposed similar measures that would codify abortion access in their state constitutions: Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Nevada and South Dakota.
Arizona organizers submitted more than double the amount of signatures needed for the measure to appear on the ballot.
FILE - Arizona abortion-rights supporters deliver over 800,000 petition signatures to the capitol to get abortion rights on the November general election ballot July 3, 2024, in Phoenix. A judge on Friday, July 26, rejected an effort by GOP lawmakers to use the term “unborn human being” to refer to a fetus in the pamphlet that Arizona voters will use to decide on a ballot measure that would expand abortion access in the state. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)
