The Prospector 01 16 2024

Page 1

OPINION Page 2

NEWS Page 4

ARTS & CULTURE Page 5

SPORTS Page 7

In my EIC era

DUI incidents

MLK Jr. Day

Men’s basketball conference game

VOL. 109, NO. 8 JANUARY 16, 2024

Assayer of Student Opinion

THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT EL PASO

theprospectordaily.com

Reminiscing on Fall 2023

August

WILL UTEP KEEP ITS ACCREDITATION? UTEP students were taken aback as news broke that the university was at risk of losing its accreditation in early August. Throughout the semester, UTEP sat in a warning status with documents pending. The university submitted appropriate documentation to keep its accreditation and had its warning status officially removed in December.

NEO-NAZIS DISTURB THE SUN CITY MUSIC SCENE The Dungeon, a local music venue stirred up controversy and shock within the El Paso music scene in September 2023, after announcing an upcoming music festival “Autumn Equinox Celebration” featuring apparent neo-Nazi and fascist-filled bands.

September

October

November

UTEP DINNER THEATRE FAREWELL After a 40-year run, the UTEP Dinner Theater (UDT) announced that the 2023-24 season will be its farewell season, with its final show at the end of spring 2024. Former director, Greg Taylor, retired after 40 years with the Dinner Theater. UTEP plans to prepare for the future of musical productions in the coming years.

PRESIDENT DR. HEATHER WILSON UTEP President Dr. Heather Wilson sat down with The Prospector in November 2023. Wilson detailed different aspects of her life in the interview, from her childhood days of seeing her dad fly planes to her career with the Air Force, politics and becoming UTEP’s 11th president.

NEW YEAR, NEW COACH As the 2023 football season wrapped up, UTEP released former head coach, Dana Dimel. UTEP will start its 2024 season with new head coach, Scotty Walden, who came from Austin Peay University. He will be UTEP’s 27th football coach.

December

Iziah Moreno is a contributor and may be reached at iamorenogavald@miners.utep.edu

French Olympians train in El Paso, Texas under Coach Hanany as they prepare for upcoming qualifiers and the 2024 Summer Olympics. Photo by Ginaluca Cuevas/The Prospector

Olympians in the Sun City BY XIMENA CORDERO The Prospector

El Paso is no stranger to great athletics, from professional teams like the Chihuahuas, the Locomotives, to UTEP sports teams. Added to that list are fourteen athletes currently training in the Sun City through the Hanany Olympic Project. The Hanany Olympic Project team was founded by Olympian and UTEP Alumni Mickaël Hanany, who specialized in the high jump event. His personal best high jump was set in El Paso, Texas in 2014 at 2.34 meters. While being well decorated at the Olympics in 2012 and 2009 World Championships he is also a D1 NCAA Champion. Hanany never left the athletic field and turned his focus towards the direction of mentorship and coaching future Olympians through his project. The team includes Adrien (France), Sean ( Jamaica), Loic (France), Christopher (France), and Fanny (France), who compete

in the 400m. Guy (France) and Floraine (France), who compete in the 100m. Ryan (France), Mouhamadou (France), and Pablo (France), who compete in the 100m and 200m. Shakeem (Bahamas) and Malek (Algeria) who compete in the 400m Hurdles, Carlos (USA) who competes in long jump, and Nawal (France) who competes in high jump. Nawal Meniker, high jumper for the team, was born in Perpignan, France. Meniker says she started training at the age of twelve and specialized in high jump as a teenager, turning her passion to her profession. “It is a passion for me, and my childhood dream was always to take part in the Olympic Games,” Meniker said. “I always thought that it was a beautiful and elegant sport and wanted to be a part of something so feminine.” She has accumulated a range of accolades during her time training and competing, including Youth Olympic vice-champion, European vice-championand French champi-

on, as well as finishing 12th in the world championships in 2023. Meniker shares that the team’s training has benefited from being in El Paso for several reasons, one of them being El Paso’s weather, “The weather is always fine, and the infrastructure is perfect,” Meniker said. Meniker says the weather is especially important as they are mostly training at outdoor fields at El Paso local high schools including Franklin, Chapin, and Andress High Schools, but they also have access to the Rise Performance weight room and hope to be able to train at the Sun Bowl in the future. Pablo Mateo, a short sprinter for the team, was born in Evry, the suburbs of Paris. Mateo says he started training at the age of thirteen, specialized in sprinting at fifteen, and has been a part of the French team since he was eighteen. Mateo holds titles such as Vice European champion of the 4x100m, bronze medal European Championship, medalist in the see OLYMPIANS on page 7


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.
The Prospector 01 16 2024 by UTEP Prospector - Issuu