5 Teams Declare Boycott Despite Forfeits
Trump: "Transgender Athletes Should Not Compete"
Controversy continues over transgender athletes participating in women's sports competitions. After a lawsuit arguing that transgender women?those who have transitioned from male to female?should not compete in women's events was dismissed, players from opposing teams have declared a series of boycotts.
According to a report by The New York Times (NYT) on the 28th (local time), the Boise State University women's volleyball team forfeited their match against the California State University, San Jose women's volleyball team the previous day. This was in response to a court ruling on the 25th that upheld the participation of Blair Fleming, an attacker from San Jose State University known to be transgender, in women's competitions. Boise State University stated in a press release that "the decision to forfeit the match was not an easy one" and expressed hope for "a more thoughtful and better system."
The boycott arose following revelations that Fleming is transgender. Brooke Sluser, a teammate of Fleming, said, "In April, while talking with Fleming, I learned that he was born male. He had been hiding his biological sex and shared locker rooms and bedrooms with us," adding, "It is unfair for a male to compete in women's sports."
Subsequently, opposing team players chose to boycott matches against Fleming's team, even at the cost of forfeiting games. So far, including Boise State University, a total of five regional women's volleyball teams have declared boycotts against playing Fleming's team.
Sluser and coaches filed a lawsuit against the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and San Jose State University, seeking to prevent transgender athletes from participating in women's competitions. They argued that Fleming's participation violates gender equality rights and is unfair, causing hardship for the entire team. Former and current players who lost their starting positions to Fleming also joined the lawsuit, claiming reduced playing time led to loss of scholarships.
However, the court dismissed their lawsuit and allowed Fleming to participate in the team's tournament match scheduled for the 29th. The NCAA also stated that the controversy surrounding Fleming constitutes discrimination against transgender individuals. The NCAA said, "Fleming meets the eligibility criteria for competition," and warned that teams avoiding matches against San Jose State University would face forfeiture penalties according to regulations. The NCAA permits transgender athletes who meet testosterone level criteria during pre-season testing and have undergone hormone therapy for at least one year to compete in women's divisions.
This incident in U.S. women's volleyball has also become a political issue. Former President Donald Trump, in an October interview with Fox News, referenced a player injured after being hit in the head by Fleming's spike during a match, saying, "I've never seen a ball hit a woman's head that hard. It was like men and women were playing together." He added, "Transgender athletes should not be allowed to compete."
Republican members of the U.S. Congress also sent a letter on the 18th to the league that includes San Jose State University, protesting that "allowing biological males to compete in women's competitions is unfair."
Ranked Only 400th in Men's Competition, Wins Women's Event... Criticism of "Unfairness"
This is not the first gender controversy in sports. There have been ongoing claims that transgender women who transitioned from male have different physiques, muscle mass, and strength compared to other female athletes, and therefore should not compete in women's events.
Leah Thomas, who competed as a male swimmer in the U.S., began hormone therapy in 2019 and started competing for the University of Pennsylvania women's swimming team in 2020. Thomas, who was ranked only between 400th and 500th in men's competitions domestically, won with outstanding results after competing in women's events, prompting criticism mainly from female athletes. At the time, a fellow athlete stated in a media interview, "It was terrible to share a locker room with Leah Thomas, who has not undergone surgery to remove male genitalia."
After the International Swimming Federation strengthened regulations in 2022, Thomas was no longer allowed to compete in women's events. Thomas filed a lawsuit in January seeking to restore eligibility as a female athlete but lost the case.
On the afternoon of June 3 last year, Na Hwa-rin (Cheorwon) is sprinting in the women's general division 1 cycling race at the 58th Gangwon Provincial Sports Festival held at the cycling stadium in Yangyang-gun, Gangwon. Photo by Yonhap News
In South Korea, a similar controversy arose when transgender woman cyclist Nah Hwa-rin won a women's cycling competition in June last year. She stated that she participated in the women's division to highlight the fairness issues caused by overseas transgender athletes winning women's events.
In a media interview at the time, Nah apologized to the female athletes she competed against and suggested that to make sports a playing field for everyone, a separate transgender division should be established in addition to men's and women's divisions.
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