Team Fights to Save Gymnastics Program After Talladega College Announces its End

Associated Press TALLADEGA, Ala. — Talladega College is planning to drop its women’s gymnastics program after just one season, but the gymnasts at the historically black school aren’t giving up on saving their team. The team turned to givelively.org to try and raise $500,000 by the end of July, bringing in more than $16,000 as of Monday night. Talladega College last year became the second HBCU to start a gymnastics program, joining Fisk University. Interim President Dr. Walter M. Kimbrough had announced Friday the program would be shut down effective July 31, saying the private college didn’t have enough resources to keep it going. With one hour to prepare, the Talladega team was told that the announcement would go public that their team would be no more. Less than 24 hours later, the team then decided they weren’t giving up without a fight. “This fundraiser was created to show the world that Dega Gym is here to stay and the community is behind them 100%,” the GoFundMe page said. “We know that our goal is daunting, but without it we will be forced to put our education and athletic careers on hold. It is too late for our team to...