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Olympic champion Tom Daley ‘furious’ about bans on trans athletes

“Anyone that’s told that they can’t compete or can’t do something they love just because of who they are, it’s not ok”

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Tom Daley (Screenshot via Channel 4 UK)

Olympic diving champion Tom Daley said he is ā€œfuriousā€ about FINA, the world swimming body, banning some transgender athletes from womenā€™s swimming, diving, and other competitions.Ā 

“Anyone that’s told that they can’t compete or can’t do something they love just because of who they are, it’s not OK,ā€ Daley said to iNews at a press conference. ā€œItā€™s something I feel really strongly about. Giving trans people the chance to share their side.ā€

Earlier this month, FINA released the new policy on eligibility, banning athletes who have experienced male puberty from women’s competitions.

FINA President Husain Al-Musallam said the new policy intended to protect athletes’ right to compete but also ensure competition fairness.

FINA intends to create an open category for athletes whose birth sex is different from their gender identity.

“This has not been done before, so FINA will need to lead the way. I want all athletes to feel included in being able to develop ideas during this process.” Al-Musallam said.

The new policy was condemned by the Human Rights Campaign, which said that requiring athletes to transition before age 12 was unrealistic and unlikely. States such as Alabama regulate young peopleā€™s access to age-appropriate gender-affirming care.

ā€œThis sudden and discriminatory decision is a blatant attack on transgender athletes who have worked to comply with longstanding policies that have allowed them to participate for years without issue,ā€ said Joni Madison, HRCā€™s Interim President, ā€œThis policy is an example of swimming organizations caving to the avalanche of ill-informed, prejudiced attacks targeted at one particular transgender swimmer.ā€

The new policy will impact the career of trans swimmer Lia Thomas, the first trans woman to win a NCAA Division I Womenā€™s Swimming Championship, and may prevent her from participating and competing in the female category.

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Controversy grows over member of Calif. universityā€™s womenā€™s volleyball team

Coach suspended, NCAA sued, more rivals forfeit

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(Photo by muzsy/Bigstock)

San Jose State Universityā€™s women volleyball team has collected yet another W by forfeit ā€” its seventh so far this season ā€” as controversy swirls around one player on its roster. Sheā€™s one of the seniors, and she has been dragged in the media by her own co-captain, who outed her as transgender. 

The Washington Blade is not naming this student athlete since neither she nor the school have confirmed or even commented on her gender identity.

SJSU visited San Diego last weekend for a match before the Aztecsā€™ biggest home crowd of the season ā€” including protesters waving ā€œSave Womenā€™s Sportsā€ banners and booing one player on the Spartans team in particular: The woman who is reported to be trans. 

Security was tight, with metal detectors and extra guards and police officers present. Video posted to YouTube by a right-wing sports media site ā€” which names the player ā€” shows an angry fan arguing with security about his First Amendment rights. 

Video recorded during Nov. 9ā€™s game shows a player for San Diego was injured following a spike by the player rumored to be trans, and had to be helped off the court. However, the video clearly shows that player was injured by landing poorly on one foot, not as a result of the spike. 

The Aztecs defeated the Spartans 3-1, but San Jose has still punched its ticket to the conference finals, thanks to its record number of forfeits. 

Wyoming was set to visit SJSU Thursday, but for the second time is joining other universities that have forfeited games against the Spartans, all without providing a reason. Boise State announced it will forfeit an upcoming match set for Nov. 21, its second forfeit against SJSU. 

In September, the Spartansā€™ co-captain, senior Brooke Slusser, outed her own teammate, the player at the center of this controversy, in joining a federal lawsuit against the NCAA spearheaded by anti-trans inclusion activist and former college athlete Riley Gaines.  

Slusser said in the lawsuit and in subsequent interviews that the player in question shouldnā€™t be on her team. The suit claims the NCAAā€™s policy on trans athletes violates Title IX by allowing ā€œmenā€ to compete in women’s sports and use women’s locker rooms where they display ā€œfull male genitalia.ā€  

The NCAA policy for trans athletes participating in womenā€™s volleyball aligns with that of USA Volleyball, which requires trans female athletes to suppress their testosterone below 10 nmol/L for a period of one year before competition. That is also how the NCAA determines eligibility. SJSU has stated repeatedly that all its players are eligible. 

The lawsuit also asks the NCAA to revoke any titles or records won by trans female athletes in women’s competitions, which seems to be specifically aimed at stripping out trans NCAA champions Lia Thomas and CeCĆ© Telfer of their titles in swimming and track and field, respectively.Ā 

Prior to this season, the player rumored to be trans did not attract any attention other than being a successful starter, like Slusser. But now that she is in the media spotlight, Slusser has come forward to tell right wing media, including Megyn Kelly, why she feels another woman two inches taller than she is poses a danger.Ā 

“I don’t feel safe,” Slusser said on “The Megyn Kelly Show” last month. “I’ve gone to my coaches and said I refuse to play against [her] ā€¦ It’s not safe.”

In the video, both Kelly and Slusser refer to the player as ā€œhimā€ and a ā€œman,ā€ and name her. 

Now comes another twist: San Jose State University suspended associate head coach Melissa Batie-Smoose with pay, indefinitely, after she filed a Title IX complaint against SJSU. She claims the player Slusser identified as trans conspired with an opponent to help the team lose a match and injure Slusser. Batie-Smoose named the player in question in her complaint and on Sept. 23, joined the same lawsuit that Slusser is now a part of. 

“Safety is being taken away from women,” Batie-Smoose told Fox News. “Fair play is taken away from women. We need more and more people to do this and fight this fight because womenā€™s sports, as we know it right now will be forever changed.”

Media reporting on the suspension, including Fox News, continue to name the athlete in question, with some also reporting what they say is the athleteā€™s birth name. 

San Jose State released a statement following the suspension of Batie-Smoose: “The associate head coach of the San Jose State University womenā€™s volleyball team is not with the team at this time, and we will not provide further information on this matter,” the team said.

SJSU Coach Todd Kress told ESPN that reports saying that any member of the Spartans colluded with their opponent are ā€œlittered with lies.ā€ 

The Spartans are currently among the top six finishers in the Mountain West Conference that will qualify to compete in the conference tournament scheduled for Nov. 27-30. 

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University of Nevada forfeits game rather than play possible trans athlete

Womenā€™s volleyball team cites ā€˜not enough players to competeā€™

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(Public domain screenshot from University of Nevada, Reno, website)

For the fifth time, a womenā€™s volleyball team has chosen to forfeit instead of play against San Jose State University, because of rumors that one of its players is a transgender woman. 

The University of Nevada, Reno, officially announced on Friday that it would forfeit Saturdayā€™s game against the SJSU Spartans. This followed an announcement by Wolf Pack players who said they “refuse to participate in any match that advances injustice against female athletes,” without providing further details.

Originally, Nevada’s athletic department had said the program would not back out from the match, citing state equality laws, but also said that no players would be disciplined if they chose to not participate.

ā€œThe vast majority of our team decided this is something we wanted to take a stand on,ā€ Nevada team captain Sia Liilii told Fox News. ā€œWe didnā€™t want to play against a male player.”

ā€œIn all of our team meetings it just kept coming back to the fact that men do not belong in womenā€™s sports. If youā€™re born a biological male, you donā€™t belong in womenā€™s sports. Itā€™s not even about this individual athlete. Itā€™s about fair competition and safety for everyone.ā€

Outsports and several conservative and right-wing websites have identified the player who is rumored to be trans, but the Washington Blade has opted to not do so since she herself has not come forward to either acknowledge or deny she is trans.Ā 

As ESPN reported, Nevada follows Southern Utah, Boise State, Wyoming, and Utah State in canceling games against the Spartans. Boise State, Wyoming, Utah State, and Nevada are all members of the Mountain West Conference, so those contests are considered forfeits and count as valuable wins in the league standings for San Jose State.

Riley Gaines, the anti-trans inclusion activist for the Independent Womenā€™s Forum has joined the chorus in claiming the Spartansā€™ roster includes a trans woman.

Despite this, neither San Jose State nor any of the other forfeiting teams have said the universityā€™s women’s volleyball team has a trans player. SJSU issued a statement defending its roster.

ā€œOur athletes all comply with NCAA and Mountain West Conference policies and they are eligible to play under the rules of those organizations. We will continue to take measures to prioritize the health and safety of our students while they pursue their earned opportunities to compete,ā€ the statement read.

The governors of Idaho, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming ā€” all of whom are members of the Republican Party ā€” have issued public statements supporting the cancellations, claiming itā€™s in the interest of fairness in women’s sports. This week, Donald Trump, the GOP presidential nominee and former president, spoke at a Fox News televised town hall when asked about trans athletes in women’s sports. 

ā€œWeā€™re not going to let it happen,ā€ Trump said. ā€œWe stop it, we stop it, we absolutely stop it. We canā€™t have it. You just ban it. The president bans it. You donā€™t let it happen. Itā€™s not a big deal.ā€ 

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Homophobes threaten lives of WNBA star and wife

New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart and Marta Xargay received anonymous emails

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(Photo courtesy of Xargay's Instagram page)

While the New York Liberty are focused on defeating the Minnesota Lynx in the WNBA finals, one of its stars has come under attack from anti-gay bigots who made death threats against that player and her wife, according to the Associated Press.

The homophobic death threats targeted forward Breanna Stewart and her wife, retired Phoenix Mercury guard Marta Xargay. Stewart said they arrived in Xargayā€™s email inbox. 

ā€œThe fact it came to Martaā€™s email is something she (had to) see. The level of closeness was a little bit different,ā€ she said. ā€œMake sure that myself and Marta are okay, but that our kids are the safest.ā€

Stewart, the two-time MVP known to teammates and on social media as ā€œStewie,ā€ told reporters Tuesday she notified her team about the emails, The Liberty then escalated it to WNBA security.

ā€œWeā€™re taking the proper precautions,ā€ Stewart said, noting that she felt the Libertyā€™s winning streak was only encouraging more threats. New York is leading their opponents two games to one after Tuesday nightā€™s 80-77 win in Minneapolis. ā€œWe love that people are engaged in our sport, but not to the point where thereā€™s threats or harassment or homophobic comments being made.ā€

Xargay filed a complaint with the New York Police Department at the advice of the team and security, said Stewart.

ā€œBeing in the finals and everything like that it makes sense to file something formal,ā€ she said.

The NYPD confirmed to the Associated Press that it received a report of aggravated harassment involving emails sent to ā€œa 33-year-old victim,ā€ said a police spokesperson. The departmentā€™s media relations team added that the NYPD hate crimes task force is investigating the threats. 

Although Stewart told reporters she has an agency that reviews most of the messages she receives, she was stunned to learn from her wife about the hateful messages that wound up in Xargayā€™s inbox. She said thatā€™s why she decided to let fans know thereā€™s no justification for hate. 

ā€œFor me to use this platform to let people know itā€™s unacceptable to bring to our sport,ā€ she said.

Last month, WNBA players and their union representatives called out league commissioner Cathy Engelbert for failing to condemn a spike in racist attacks on players. Itā€™s been a long-standing problem exacerbated by the rivalry between Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark and the Chicago Skyā€™s Angel Reese. The league has never been more popular than it is now, and with that success, fans have escalated their criticism of players. 

Since then, Engelbert has addressed the rise in player harassment on social media in an address prior to Game 1 of the WNBA finals one week ago. 

ā€œIt just is something where we have to continue to be a voice for this, a voice against it, condemning it, and making sure that we find every opportunity to support our players, who have been dealing with this for much longer than this year,ā€ Engelbert said.

In her address, Engelbert pledged the league will work with the playersā€™ union to figure out what they can do together to combat it. 

ā€œWe continue to emphasize that there is absolutely no room for hateful or threatening comments made about players, teams or anyone affiliated with the WNBA,ā€ a league spokesperson said in response to questions about the death threats made against Stewart and Xargay. ā€œWeā€™re aware of the most recent matter and are working with league and team security as well as law enforcement on appropriate security measures.ā€

The Liberty play the Lynx again Friday night in Minneapolis. 

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