Overnight in Australia, Basketball Australia made a change in its policy on braids — yes, braids — worn by women players in the WNBL, the country’s women’s basketball league. From now on, players will not be required to tie their braids in a bun, a policy that American import Tiffany Mitchell had objected to — and called racist.
The policy had become quite the controversy Down Under after Mitchell highlighted how, contrary to Basketball Australia’s claim, FIBA had dropped their braid-to-bun rule. BA reviewed the policy and, on Tuesday, described it as “outdated and culturally insensitive”.