Martina Navratilova reacts to Canadian powerlifter April Hutchinson being banned for speaking out against 'biological males' in women's competition
Martina Navratilova has not taken kindly to the Canadian Powerlifting Union (CPU) imposing a two-year ban on powerlifter April Hutchinson for speaking out against transgender athletes competing in women's events.
Hutchinson initially raised her concerns in August after fellow competitor and trans woman, Anne Andres, competed in the Female Masters Unequipped category at the Canadian Powerlifting Union’s Western Canadian Championship.
Andres lifted a combined total of 597.5 kilograms, surpassing the second-placed SuJan Gill by over 200 kilograms to clinch the gold medal at the event. In doing so, she not only broke the national record but also set an unofficial world record in the women's powerlifting category.
At the time, Hutchinson took to social media and raised concerns about the fairness of a trans athlete competing against biological women. In October, she reiterated her beliefs in an appearance on the Piers Morgan show and criticized the CPU for their inaction.
On Tuesday, November 7, April Hutchinson took to social media and shared that she had been handed a two-year ban for publicly opposing the inclusion of "biological males" in women's powerlifting.
"BREAKING: I now face a 2-year ban by the CPU for speaking publicly about the unfairness of biological males being allowed to taunt female competitors & loot their winnings. Apparently, I have failed in my gender-role duties as "supporting actress" in the horror show that is my #sport right now," she posted.
"Naturally, the CPU deemed MY written (private) complaint of the male bullying to be "frivolous and vexatious"," she added.
Martina Navratilova, a vocal advocate against the inclusion of trans athletes in women's sports, expressed dismay at Hutchinson's ban. She stated such situations discouraged female athletes from speaking out and criticized the CPU for their decision.
"And people still wonder why the female athletes don’t speak up more??? This won’t stand CPU- you are as wrong as it gets," Martina Navratilova posted on X (Formerly Twitter).
Martina Navratilova frustrated by 'smug' trans woman powerlifter Anne Andres mocking female athletes in the sport
In a video posted earlier this year, Anne Andres ridiculed biologically female powerlifters by stating that their performance on the bench press was subpar. She also claimed that they could barely lift more weight than her son, who weighed 45 pounds.
"Why is women's bench so bad? I mean, not compared to me. We are not talking about Mackenzie lee, she's got little T-rex arms and she's like 400 pounds of chest muscle. I mean, standard bench in powerlifting competitions for women, I literally don't understand why it is so bad," Andres said.
"My son, he weighs 45 pounds, his max bench is 33. Legit see some women in competition who do something like 50 pounds and I just don't understand it," she added.
On Tuesday, November 7, Martina Navratilova reacted to the clip and expressed her disdain for how "smug" Andres sounded.
"He is so smug, isn't he?" she posted on X (formerly Twitter).