In a glorious comeback after being banished from the Tokyo Olympics in 2022 for testing positive ahead of the games for THC, one of the active components of cannabis, out American runner Sha’Carri Richardson won the 100-meter world title at the World Athletics Championships in Hungary on Monday.
Delighting crowds at the National Athletics Center in Budapest, Richardson ran a personal best time of 10.65 seconds, making her the fastest woman in the world.
The achievement proved her personal mantra, “I’m not back. I’m better.”
In the aftermath of the controversy surrounding her exit from the Tokyo games, the world champion said she would need time to process it all, the New York Timesreports.
“Honestly, I don’t even know what to say,” Richardson confessed. “It’s surreal. I think in the morning, I’ll probably feel it.”
It was a remarkable upset by Richardson over Jamaican sprinters Shericka Jackson and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.
“I’m honored. I’m blessed. I had great competition, [which] pulled the best out of me, and I’m just honored to leave with a gold medal,” Richardson remarked after the race.
NBC News reports that during last year’s U.S. Track and Field Championships, Richardson could not advance past the 100-meter heats.
As a result of Monday’s performance, the 2024 Olympic hopeful is in a better position than ever before.
Before winning Monday’s race, she was considered a favorite to earn an Olympic spot after winning the U.S. 100-meter title last month.
As Richardson’s journey on the track continues, she hopes fans will see athletes for more than their accomplishments.
Richardson wants fans to recognize the struggles and sacrifices that athletes go through to reach their goals. She hopes her story will encourage others to never give up on their dreams, no matter their obstacles, the Dallas Morning News reports.
“I would say’ never give up,’” she replied when asked what message this triumph conveyed. “Never allow media, never allow outsiders, never allow anything but yourself and your faith define who you are. I would say ‘Always fight. No matter what, fight.’”
As children across the U.S. head back to classes and practices for fall sports, four more states are expecting their K-12 schools to keep transgender girls off their girls teams.
Kansas, North Dakota and Wyoming had new laws in place restricting transgender athletes before classes resumed, and a Missouri law takes effect at the end of this month, bringing the number of states with restrictions to 23.
North Carolina could enact a ban later this month, and Ohio could follow in the fall. A few laws, including ones in Arizona and West Virginia, are on hold because of federal lawsuits.
This year’s new restrictions are part of a larger wave of legislation across the U.S. against transgender rights. Republican legislators in some states have banned gender-affirming care for minors, restricted transgender people’s use of school and public restrooms, limited what public schools can teach about gender and sexuality and barred schools from requiring the use of a transgender student’s preferred pronouns.
The sports laws have been imposed since 2020, and most are aimed at transgender girls. A majority cover less formal intramural contests organized within a single school’s student body as well as contests among different schools, and some restrict transgender boys as well. Almost all say other students and their parents can sue schools that don’t enforce the restrictions.
Lawmakers expect a child’s earliest birth certificate to determine which sports teams they can join. Principals and coaches are expected to be the enforcers.
“Those are uncomfortable conversations,” said Jeanne Woodbury, interim executive director of the LGBGT+ rights group Equality Arizona. “Everyone is going through that process.”
She added: “For trans kids, it’s never been a walk in the park, but now they have this law to contend with on top of everything else.”
In Oklahoma, where a law has been in place since 2022, athletes or their parents must file an annual affidavit “acknowledging the biological sex of the student at birth.”
Kansas and other states expect school officials to review a child’s earliest birth certificate if questions arise about an athlete’s eligibility.
Bill Faflick, executive director of the Kansas State High School Activities Association, said his state’s law has been greeted by a “matter of fact” acceptance in rules seminars for administrators and coaches.
“It has not been met with any resistance and has not been met with any outpouring of support or opposition, one way or the other,” Faflick said.
Even before the laws against transgender girls on girls teams passed, some states largely blocked the practice by handling questions or concerns on a case-by-case level at the school or state athletic association level.
Supporters of the restrictions argue that they’re protecting fair competition and scholarship opportunities for young women that took decades to win. They say that well before puberty, boys have physical advantages over girls in speed, strength and lung capacity.
“It’s a puzzlement to me that more people aren’t feeling sympathy for the girls whose sports careers are ruined,” said Tom Horne, the elected Republican state school superintendent in Arizona, who is defending his state’s law in federal court.
Doctors, parents, and LGBTQ+ rights advocates counter that boys’ physical advantages come with a surge in testosterone during puberty — changes gender-affirming care blocks.
Critics also argue that transgender athletes are so few that schools and associations governing school sports can handle their individual cases without a state law.
For example, in Kansas, the State High School Activities Association recorded 11 transgender athletes during the 2022-23 school year, and three were trans girls. Before Florida’s law took effect in 2021, its High School Athletic Association had cleared 13 transgender students to play in the previous eight years.
Becky Pepper-Jackson appeared to be the only transgender girl seeking to play girls’ sports in West Virginia in 2021 when the then-11-year-old and her mother, Heather Jackson, sued the state over its law.
Because of their lawsuit, the West Virginia law is on hold, and Becky, now a 13-year-old entering eighth grade, threw the discus and the shot put in seven track meets this spring.
The state is trying to persuade a federal appeals court to let it enforce its law, and in a filing last month, it cited the longer distances Becky threw this year as a reason. The state said any time another girl finished behind Becky in either event — more than 180 times — the other athlete had been unfairly “displaced.”
Jackson said the state knows her daughter only “on paper,” and Becky improved by training relentlessly at home with her own equipment.
“As a parent, all we want for our children is for them to be successful and happy, period,” Jackson told The Associated Press. “That should be an opportunity for everybody, every time, everywhere in this country.”
Educators and LGBTQ+ rights advocates argue that transgender kids aren’t the only athletes likely to feel the effects of the laws. Some worry that parents will challenge the right to play of cisgendered girls who are taller or more muscular than their peers — or just a whole lot better.
One of athletes who sued Idaho over its 2020 law was a 17-year-old cisgendered girl, listed only as Jane Doe. The lawsuit said she had an “athletic build” and wanted to avoid ”invasive or uncomfortable” gender tests.
“It’s going to create this feeling in some people that, ‘I can go question someone’s gender, and it’s my right to do that,’” said G.A. Buie, executive director of United School Administrators of Kansas, an association representing public school leaders.
Parents, doctors and LGBTQ+ rights advocates say restrictions on transgender athletes are less about sports and more about trying to make transgender kids disappear from society.
“What lawmakers fail to understand is that transgender people, nonbinary people, intersex people, have always been here,” said Anne Lieberman, policy and programs director for Athlete Ally, a group that advocates for transgender athletes. “Unless it is known that a student is trans, it is very hard to keep somebody from playing sports.”
Kevin Maxen, associate strength coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars, came out on Thursday and is believed to be the first openly gay NFL coach, as reported by WFSB.com. Hailing from Southbury, Connecticut, and an alumnus of Pomperaug High School, Maxen’s journey from a star football player to an NFL coach is marked by determination and hard work.
Maxen said, as quoted by Outsports, “I don’t want to feel like I have to think about it anymore. I don’t want to feel like I have to lie about who I am seeing or why I am living with someone else. I want to be vocal in support of people living how they want to live, but I also want to just live and not feel fear about how people will react.”
As a former Pomperaug High School Panthers captain, Maxen’s leadership skills and talent on the field were evident from an early age, graduating with the Class of 2011. Not only was he known for his prowess in football, but he was also recognized as the “most artistic” by his senior class, demonstrating a multifaceted personality beyond the sports arena.
Maxen’s success also extended to the baseball field, where he played a pivotal role in helping the Panthers achieve an impressive 26-2 record during his senior year. His dedication to sports continued as he played college ball at Western Connecticut State University in Danbury, honing his skills and preparing for the path that lay ahead.
According to ESPN, Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan said, “Kevin is a Jacksonville Jaguar through and through, and a key member of our football team and community. “I look forward to seeing Kevin next week at training camp and hope that he comes to work each day during camp and through the season feeling confident, free, and at peace.”
Maxen said on Friday that the support he received from both the NFL and the people around the country was “Out of this world.” as quoted by Outsports.
Female transgender athletes who transitioned after male puberty will no longer be able to compete in women’s races, world cycling governing body the UCI said Friday.
The decision came after American rider Austin Killips became the first openly transgender woman to win an official cycling event earlier this year.
“From now on, female transgender athletes who have transitioned after (male) puberty will be prohibited from participating in women’s events on the UCI International Calendar — in all categories — in the various disciplines,” the international federation said in a statement.
The UCI said the ban, starting on Monday, was necessary to “ensure equal opportunities.”
Killips rode to victory in the fifth stage of the Tour of the Gila, one of the marquee U.S. stage races. Her victory provoked a negative reaction by some cycling fans and former racers despite the 27-year-old athlete having adhered to a policy put in place by the UCI last year requiring transgender athletes to have serum testosterone levels of 2.5 nanomoles per liter or less for at least 24 months before competing in women’s events.
The UCI said Friday it “has taken note of the state of scientific knowledge, which does not confirm that at least two years of gender-affirming hormone therapy with a target plasma testosterone concentration of 2.5 nmol/L is sufficient to completely eliminate the benefits of testosterone during puberty in men.”
It also noted the difficulty to “draw precise conclusions about the effects” of gender-confirming hormone therapy.
“Given the current state of scientific knowledge, it is also impossible to rule out the possibility that biomechanical factors such as the shape and arrangement of the bones in their limbs may constitute a lasting advantage for female transgender athletes,” the UCI added.
Despite the ban, UCI president David Lappartient said “the UCI would like to reaffirm that cycling — as a competitive sport, leisure activity or means of transport — is open to everyone, including transgender people, whom we encourage like everyone else to take part in our sport.
It also noted the difficulty to “draw precise conclusions about the effects” of gender-confirming hormone therapy.
“Given the current state of scientific knowledge, it is also impossible to rule out the possibility that biomechanical factors such as the shape and arrangement of the bones in their limbs may constitute a lasting advantage for female transgender athletes,” the UCI added.
Despite the ban, UCI president David Lappartient said “the UCI would like to reaffirm that cycling — as a competitive sport, leisure activity or means of transport — is open to everyone, including transgender people, whom we encourage like everyone else to take part in our sport.
Champion runner Caster Semenya won a potentially landmark legal victory on Tuesday when the European Court of Human Rights decided she was discriminated against by sports rules that force her to medically reduce her natural hormone levels to compete in major competitions.
The ruling by the Strasbourg, France-based court questioned the “validity” of the contentious international athletics regulations in that they infringed Semenya’s human rights.
But the two-time Olympic champion’s first legal success after two failed appeals in sports’ highest court and the Swiss supreme court came with a major caveat. Amid her bid to be allowed to run again without restriction and go for another gold at next year’s Olympics in Paris, Tuesday’s judgment, while major, did not immediately result in the rules being dropped.
That might still take years.
The South African athlete’s challenge against the testosterone rules began in 2018.
It has gone from the Switzerland-based Court of Arbitration for Sport to the Swiss supreme court and now the European rights court. The 4-3 ruling in Semenya’s favor by a panel of human rights judges merely opened the way for the Swiss supreme court to reconsider its decision.
That might result in the case going back to CAS in Lausanne. And only then might the highly controversial rules enforced by World Athletics be possibly removed.
The 32-year-old Semenya, who has been barred by the rules from running in her favorite 800-meter race since 2019 and has lost four years of her career at her peak, has only 13 months until Paris.
In a statement soon after the European rights court’s decision was published, World Athletics showed no sign of budging and said its rules would “remain in place.”
“We remain of the view that the … regulations are a necessary, reasonable and proportionate means of protecting fair competition in the female category as the Court of Arbitration for Sport and Swiss Federal Tribunal both found,” World Athletics said.
World Athletics also said it would be “encouraging” the government of Switzerland to appeal the ruling. Switzerland was the respondent in the case because Semenya was challenging her last legal loss in the Swiss supreme court. Switzerland’s government has three months to appeal.
The Swiss government was also ordered to pay Semenya 60,000 euros ($66,000) for costs and expenses.
There was no immediate reaction from Semenya or her lawyers in South Africa.
While Semenya has been at the center of the highly emotive issue of sex eligibility in sports and is the issue’s figurehead in challenging the rules, she is not the only athlete affected. At least three other Olympic medalists have also been impacted by the rules that set limits on the level of natural testosterone female athletes may have if they want to compete. World Athletics says there are “a number” of other elite athletes who fall under the regulations.
There are no testosterone limits in place for male athletes.
Semenya’s case is not the same as the debate over transgender women who have transitioned from male to female being allowed to compete in sports, although the two issues do have crossover.
Semenya was identified as female at birth, raised as a girl and has been legally identified as female her whole life. She has one of a number of conditions known as differences in sex development, or DSDs, which cause naturally high testosterone that is in the typical male range.
Semenya says her high natural testosterone should be considered a genetic gift in the same way as a basketballer’s height or a swimmer’s long arms.
While track authorities can’t challenge Semenya’s legal gender, they say her condition includes her having the typical male XY chromosome pattern and physical traits that make her “biologically male,” an assertion that has enraged Semenya. World Athletics says Semenya’s testosterone levels give her an athletic advantage that is comparable to a man competing in women’s events and there needs to be rules to address that.
To do that, track has enforced rules since 2019 that require athletes like Semenya to artificially reduce their testosterone to below a specific mark, which is measured through the amount of testosterone recorded in their blood. They can do that by taking daily contraceptive pills, having hormone-blocking injections, or undergoing surgery under the rules. If athletes choose one of the first two options, they would effectively need to do it for their entire careers to remain eligible to compete regularly.
Semenya has railed against the regulations, and refused to follow them since 2019, saying they discriminated against her because of her condition.
On Tuesday, the European Court of Human Rights agreed. It also found for Semenya on another point of her appeal, that she wasn’t given “effective remedy” against that discrimination when the Court of Arbitration for Sports and the Swiss supreme court both denied her appeals.
There were “serious questions as to the validity” of the testosterone rules, the court said, including with any side effects of the hormone treatment athletes would have to undergo, the difficulties in them remaining within the rules by trying to control their natural hormone levels, and the “lack of evidence” that their high natural testosterone actually gave them an advantage anyway.
That last point struck at the heart of the regulations, which World Athletics has always said is about dealing with the unfair sports advantage Semenya has over other women.
The European rights court also found Semenya’s second legal appeal against the rules at the Swiss supreme court should have led to “a thorough institutional and procedural review” of the rules, but that did not happen.
The rules have been made stricter since Semenya launched her case at the European rights court, with World Athletics announcing in March that athletes would have to reduce their testosterone level to an even lower mark. The updated regulations also apply to every event and not just Semenya’s favored range between 400 meters and one mile, which they did previously.
Lesbian soccer legend Megan Rapinoe said in a press conference Saturday that she plans to retire at the end of 2023, which means the upcoming World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, which starts later this month, will be her last one.
Rapinoe has been a fixture on the U.S. women’s soccer team since she joined it in 2006. The 38-year-old made the comments during an appearance ahead of a U.S. game against Wales in California, The New York Times reports.
“I could have just never imagined where this beautiful game would have taken me,” Rapinoe said. “I feel so honored to have represented this country, this federation for so many years.”
She added, “It’s truly been the greatest thing I’ve ever done.”
The Times notes that Rapinoe has had several injuries while playing for the national team.
The player has been a vocal activist for LGBTQ+ rights and pay equity.
Soccer star and teammate Alex Morgan said, according to the Times, that Rapinoe texted the team’s group chat letting them know about her decision.
“Well, now we have to win the whole damn thing,” Morgan said.
Earlier this year, the athlete was named one of Time’s 12 Women of the Year this year. She dedicated her win to transgender people.
“I am only here because of them,” Rapinoe said at the Women of the Year gala, held at the Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in March, Timereports. “We all know what’s going on in our country with the attempted erasure of trans people.”
“The way they refuse to live their life any other way than completely whole is so inspiring. I’m inspired by the invitation to be completely myself,” Rapinoe said. “They offer us a full view of what it means to be a human in the world. A whole opportunity to be the crazy-ass human beings that we are. That’s a great gift.”
Wimbledon 2023 is officially underway – weather permitting – but despite the All England Club’s all-white rule, there are a handful of out gay players offering some vital rainbow LGBTQ+ representation at tennis’s most prestigious tournament.
Since the days of trailblazing gay Grand Slam champions Billie Jean King and Martina Navratilova, women’s tennis has long provided some of the biggest LGBTQ+ names in sport – and there are currently several players Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) tour carrying that torch for a new generation.
However, the men’s Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) isn’t currently just lagging behind, it’s yet to even cross the starting line: There are currently no out gay players on the men’s tour and no professional male tennis player has come out publicly in the Open Era while still playing the game.
American former world number 57 Brian Vahaly came out publicly as gay in 2017, a decade after retiring from the sport, and shed light on some of the barriers faced by gay male players.
“I heard homophobic comments all the time in the locker room – to my face, behind my back. That was just a part of the culture”, he told The Telegraph in 2018.
In 2022, men’s top 10 player and former Wimbledon quarter-finalist Taylor said he believedan out gay male player would be “accepted” on the tour, but as Wimbledon rolls around for another, the wait goes on.
In the meantime, here’s a run-down of the out gay women’s players to look out for in the Wimbledon 2023 main draws – as well as a few others who aren’t making an appearance at SW19 this year, but are still representing for the LGBTQ+ community on the tour.
Out LGBTQ+ tennis players competing at Wimbledon 2023
Daria Kasatkina
Russian tennis star Daria Kasatkina became the highest-profile out gay tennis star on the WTA tour when she came out publicly in July 2022.
The 26-year-old, who has a career-high ranking of number eight and reached the quarter-finals at Wimbledon in 2018, confirmed her relationship with Olympic figure skater Natalia Zabiiako via Instagram.
In the year since, Kasatkina has been an outspoken critic of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and anti-gay political culture – even if it’s come at great personal cost.
“It’s unsafe for me now, with the regime we have. As a gay person who opposes the war, it’s not possible to go back,” she told The Times in July 2023. “But I don’t regret it even 1 per cent.”
She went on: “When the war started and everything turned to hell, I felt very overwhelmed and I just decided, “F*** it all”. I couldn’t hide any more. I wanted to say my position on the war and my [sexuality], which was tough, coming from a country where being gay is not accepted, but it felt like I had a backpack of stones on my shoulders and I just had to throw it off.
“Afterwards, I faced a few consequences, but the only thing that worried me was my parents, and they were fine. They are proud of me.”
Nadia Podoroska
Argentinian tennis player Nadia Podoroska came out publicly in October 2022.
In an Instagram post, the former French Open semi-finalist – who has been ranked as high as number 36 in the world – confirmed her relationship with fellow Argentinian tennis player Guillermina Naya.
Shared on Naya’s 26th birthday, Podoroska’s post consisted of images of the couple hugging and kissing, with the caption: “Today I celebrate you from afar, but I feel you by my side every day of my life.”
Podoroska was congratulated on her announcement by former women’s world number one and LGBTQ+ trailblazer Billie Jean King, who tweeted: “Living authentically takes such courage, but is always worth it.”
Greet Minnen
Belgium’s former world number 69 Greet Minnen was in a high-profile relationship with fellow Belgian tennis star Alison Van Uytvanck until late 2021.
In 2019, Minnen and Van Uytvanck became the first same-sex couple in history to play doubles together at Wimbledon, reaching the second round.
Minnen’s public coming out took place at the tournament the year before, when Van Uytvanck rushed over to kiss her in the stands after defeating then-defending champion Garbiñe Muguruza in the second round.
Minnen and Van Uytvanck announced their engagement in December 2020 before going their separate ways the following year.
Other LGBTQ+ tennis players who aren’t competing at Wimbledon in 2023
Demi Schuurs
Dutch doubles specialist Demi Schuurs has a career-high doubles ranking of number 7 and has reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open as well as the quarter-finals of Wimbledon and the US Open in doubles.
Schuurs came out as gay as a teenager and has stated her desire to be a role model for young LGBTQ+ people.
She told the WTA in 2020: “I think that’s really nice to be able to support younger fans who may be going through the same things I did. I remember the feelings I had when I came out, so I want to help younger people understand that they should be how they want to be, and show what they want to show.
“You only live once, so you have to be happy and don’t need to stress about being gay or not.
Alison Van Uytvanck
Belgian former world number 37 Alison Van Uytvanck has been one of the most vocal champions of LGBTQ+ visibility on the WTA tour since her relationship with countrywoman Greet Minnen was thrust into the spotlight in 2018.
The former French Open quarter-finalist, who is now engaged to Emilie Vermeiren after splitting with Minnen in late 2021, told The Guardian in 2019 that she would like to see more support for LGBTQ+ tennis players.
“I think people would have more confidence”, she said at the time. “That would be something good, men would appreciate that. More people would come out – it would help to make it easier.”
Argentina’s Guillermina Naya achieved a career-high ranking of 533 in 2020 and has won two titles on the ITF Cicuit – the tier of tournaments below the WTA tour.
Naya’s relationship with Argentinian player Nadia Podoroska was confirmed by Podoroska in October 2022.
Out gay British player Tara Moore is a former world 145 player in singles and former top 100 player in doubles.
She has been inactive on the professional circuit since the summer of 2022 after being provisionally suspended after testing positive for a banned substance.
Moore rote on Twitter at the time: “I have never knowingly taken a banned substance in my career. I am investigating how the positive result could have occurred and look forward to proving that I am a clean athlete.”
“I am deeply saddened by the provisional suspension and hope to be back on the court as soon as possible.”
Moore is currently in a relationship with American player and former doubles partner Emina Bektas. She was previously engaged to Swiss player Conny Perrin.
Emina Bektas is a 30-year-old American player who is currently in a relationship with British player Tara Moore.
Bektas achieved a career-high ranking of 139 in the summer of 2023, but lost out on a place in the Wimbledon 2023 main draw after being knocked out in the first round of the qualifying tournament.
Conny Perrin
Swiss player Conny Perrin has been ranked as high as 134 in the world and was previously engaged to British player Tara Moore.
In 2017, Perrin told the New York Times that dating a fellow tennis player had benefits, saying: “It’s different when you date someone else who doesn’t really understand tennis and all the traveling and stuff like that.
“We understand that of course we need to travel sometimes apart.”
The National Hockey League (NHL), the highest level professional ice hockey league representing 32 North American teams, has banned teams from wearing Pride-themed warm-up jerseys during the teams’ LGBTQ+-inclusive Pride nights.
The NHL’s ban will also forbid teams from wearing jerseys commemorating military veterans, people with cancer, and others. The league’s decision comes during Pride Month and barely a week after Major League Baseball (MLB) announced a similar ban.
When a gay couple was shown kissing in the stadium, he said “That’s disgusting. Security, get rid of them.”
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman recently talk to Sportsnet about the rainbow-colored jerseys and how some players have refused to wear them.
“It’s become a distraction,” Bettman said. “And taking away from the fact that all of our clubs host nights in honor of various groups or causes, and we’d rather they continue to get the appropriate attention they deserve and not be a distraction.”
Bettman noted that NHL teams will still host Pride nights; players just won’t wear rainbow-colored jerseys during those nights.
Bettman’s “distraction” comment may reference instances like what happened last January when Philadelphia Flyers’ player Ivan Provorov refused to take part in his team’s Pride Night warm-up session because he didn’t want to wear a rainbow-colored jersey. He said the jersey violated his Russian Orthodox Christian beliefs.
In March, James Reimer, a goalie with the San Jose Sharks, declined to wear his team’s Pride jersey for the same reason. Players with the Minnesota Wild and New York Rangers have refused to wear the jerseys as well.
In a statement against the new policy, You Can Play, an organization opposing queerphobia in sports, said that they were “concerned and disappointed” by the new policy.
“Today’s decision means that the over 95% of players who chose to wear a Pride jersey to support the community will now not get an opportunity to do so. Pride nights will continue and we look forward to further enhancing the programming these opportunities bring to the mission of inclusion and belonging for the 2SLGBTQ+ community given this restriction,” the organization said.
Hockey commentator Gord Miller criticized the decision on Twitter, writing, “In addition to the LGBTQ+ community, people with cancer, members of the military and their families, black and indigenous people will be among those who will no longer be visibly recognized before games.”
In March, Luke Prokop, the only out gay athlete ever to play under an NHL contract, said“It’s disheartening to see some teams no longer wearing [Pride jerseys] or embracing their significance, while the focus of others has become about the players who aren’t participating rather than the meaning of the night itself.”
Prokop said that Pride Nights and Pride jerseys play an important part in “promoting and respecting inclusion for the LGBTQIA+ community” and in “fostering greater acceptance and understanding” of queer people in his sport.
“Everyone is entitled to their own set of beliefs,” he said, adding, “I think it’s important to recognize the difference between endorsing a community and respecting individuals within it.”
Last week, MLB announced a similar ban on Pride-themed jerseys.
Soccer champ Nilla Fischer has revealed that she and her teammates on Sweden’s national team had to “show their genitalia for the doctor” at the 2011 Women’s World Cup to prove that they were cis women.
Fischer bares all in her new autobiography I Didn’t Even Say Half of It, where she describes the “humiliating” experience of showing her vagina to a designated physiotherapist.
“We were told that we should not shave ‘down there’ in the coming days and that we will show our genitalia for the doctor,” wrote Fischer.
The reveal at that year’s World Cup in Germany was prompted by accusations from Nigeria, South Africa, and Ghana that Equatorial Guinea had men on their squad.
“No one understands the thing about shaving but we do as we are told and think ‘how did it get to this?’ Why are we forced to do this now, there has to be other ways to do this. Should we refuse?”
“At the same time no one wants to jeopardize the opportunity to play at a World Cup. We just have to get the s**t done no matter how sick and humiliating it feels.”
Two weeks before the tournament, FIFA issued a policy requiring teams to sign a declaration guaranteeing players are “of an appropriate gender.” That policy is still in effect.
After the African accusations, FIFA demanded immediate testing.
“I understand what I have to do and quickly pull down my training pants and underwear at the same time,” Fischer told Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet. “The physio nods and says ‘yup’ and then looks out at the doctor who is standing with his back to my doorway. He makes a note and moves on in the corridor to knock on the next door.
“When everyone on our team is checked, that is to say, has exposed their vagina, our team doctor can sign that the Swedish women’s national football team consists only of women.”
Fischer credits staff for making the odious experience bearable.
“We had a very safe environment in the team. So it was probably the best environment to do it in. But it’s an extremely strange situation and overall not a comfortable way to do it.”
Sweden’s team doctor at the time, Mats Börjesson, was circumspect.
“FIFA doesn’t do this to be mean to anyone,” he said. “The sports world has tried to create fairness for girls so that they don’t train their whole lives and then someone comes in with an unreasonable advantage.”
While a physical exam is expeditious, buccal swab testing to collect DNA in the mouth is the more common method used to determine sex.
The Toronto Blue Jays baseball team have announced they are to drop pitcher Anthony Bass after an anti-LGBTQ+ post he made has caused widespread condemnation.
The 35-year-old was dropped from the Canadian baseball team after three years following the pitcher sharing a video to his Instagram account in May encouraging viewers to boycott Bud Light.
Bud Light boycotts became synonymous with right-wing anti-LGBTQ+ bigotry after the beer company organised a sponsorship deal with trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
Bass’ post, which he later deleted and apologised for, encouraged Christians to boycott the brand, calling it an “evil” and “demonic” force being shoved “into children’s faces”.
Following the near month-long condemnation of Bass, Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins said on Friday (9 June) that the team would drop Bass from its line-up.
In a statement, Atkins explained that the decision was primarily regarding performance on the field, but that “distraction” was also part of it.
“I’m saying we’re trying to build the best possible team we can build and this was a baseball decision to make our team better,” he said.
The move came just hours before the Blue Jays were set to start their first game of Pride Weekend against the Minnesota Twins. Bass was expected to take part in the match.
Anthony Bass apologises for a second time, stands by his ‘personal beliefs’
“We definitely don’t want anyone feeling any hurt,” Atkins said. “We’re focused on the environment. We care about this community. We care about our fans. And I deeply regret if people do feel that way. It certainly was not our intention.”
Shortly after deleting his Instagram post, Bass apologised for the post, recognising that it was “hurtful to the Pride community,” which he said includes “friends” and “close family members”.
In his first on-pitch appearance following the backlash, the player was met with a chorus of boos from fans angered by the situation.
He then reiterated his apology on Thursday (8 June) when he said he stands by his “personal beliefs”.
“But I also mean no harm towards any groups of people,” he said. “And I felt like taking that down the second time was the right thing to do and not being a distraction.
“As a team, our job is to win baseball games. And that’s my focus.”
Bass’ initial call for a Bud Light boycott saw him join such right-wing, anti-LGBTQ+ pundits as self-described theocratic fascist Matt Walsh, who said that the boycott “was about sending a message”, and musician-turned-anti-woke pundit Kid Rock, who filmed himself shooting cans of the beer.