"I got attacked like crazy on Twitter" - Martina Navratilova recalls accusations of being transphobic following comments on transgender athletes
Tennis legend Martina Navratilova recently revealed how she was accused of being transphobic following comments she made about transgender athletes.
As a human rights activist, Navratilova has always been outspoken. Similarly, she was vocal about controversial transgender swimmer Lia Thomas dominating the women's division.
The American felt it was unfair due to concerns that transgender females possess physical advantages over biological females, a notion supported by many scientific researches.
She even recently criticized the USTA for its position on transgender athletes competing in women's tennis tournaments after transgender tennis star Alicia Rowley reportedly became the latest player to win a Women's National Tennis Championship and 'the coveted Golden Ball'.
All of these protests, however, came at a cost, as evidenced by Martina Navratilova's latest first-person essay for Genspect. She began by stating that she chose tennis because it is a sport that is fair to both men and women and that in 2018, fairness was all she had in mind when she posted a controversial tweet.
"Fairness has always been important to me. In fact, the reason I chose tennis—besides the fact that my family played it—is that it’s a fair sport. The ball is either in or it’s out," Navratilova wrote at the time.
"Fairness was on my mind in 2018 when I inadvertently got swept up in the trans-athletes-in-women’s-sports maelstrom with this tweet: 'Clearly that can’t be right. You can’t just proclaim yourself a female and be able to compete against women,'" she added.
The 18-time Grand Slam champion revealed that she was viciously attacked on Twitter for that one tweet, prompting her to delete the post. Since then, she has been conducting research on trans athletes, consulting with scientists, and enriching her knowledge.
"I got attacked like crazy on Twitter. Wanting to be open-minded and respectful, I took the tweet down and promised to educate myself, and for the past five years, I’ve been doing that," Martina Navratilova wrote.
"I’ve been reading about testosterone. I’ve been talking with scientists. I’ve been listening to female athletes and trans athletes, young and old. And I’ve learned a lot," she added.
"They can play in the men’s category" - Martina Navratilova on transgender athletes
Martina Navratilova then offered a solution to the recurring issue, stating that male athletes who identify as women can either be accommodated in the men's category, with it being redefined as 'open', or they can completely create their own events.
"Can males who identify as women be accommodated in sports? Of course. They can play in the men’s category. The men’s category can be redefined as “open.” Or they can create their own events, as the Gay Games have done every four years since 1982," Martina Navratilova wrote.
The American supports anything as long as transgender athletes do not compete in the female section. She also said that men should continue to be excluded from the female category, which was established to give women an equal chance to compete.
"I support any accommodations so long as male athletes do not take participation opportunities or scholarships from female athletes. The female category was created to provide opportunities for women to compete fairly. It was always intended to exclude males. We need to keep excluding them," Martina Navratilova wrote.