A member of the Fencing Academy of Philadelphia named Stephanie Turner protested being made to compete against a transgender (male) opponent Redmond Sullivan by taking a knee and forfeiting a match
Stephanie Turner faced Redmond Sullivan, a “transgender woman” who is biologically male, on Sunday at USA Fencing’s Cherry Blossom D1A/VET ROC event in Maryland.
Males who “identifies” as women should be able to compete against real women, according to USA Turner Fencing, a famous left-wing institution.
Who is transgender fencer Redmond Sullivan, bio, age, high school, college, biological real gender and fencing career details
Age 31 Stephanie Turner and Redmond Sullivan both participated in the Division IA Women’s Foil, but Turner took a knee at the beginning of the match and refused to challenge the outcome.
Turner’s participation was noted by the tournament as “DNF” (did not complete), which cost Sullivan the victory via forfeit.
Riley Gaines, Megyn Kelly, and Martina Navrátilová were among the many individuals who praised Turner on social media for declining to play against a male opponent. Prior to joining Wagner College’s women’s fencing team, Sullivan was a member of the men’s fencing squad. In high school, Sullivan participated in girls’ track and field as well.
Stephanie Turner’s decision to forgo her opportunity to compete is regrettable, but when organizations continue to put gender ideology and “inclusivity” ahead of the equity of women’s sports and competitions, many women are left with no other option.
Before joining the women’s team at Wagner College, Sullivan had competed in the men’s division.
Sullivan who was born a biological male switched college team last year and has since competed against women and transferred from the Wagner College men’s team to the women’s team last year
Redmond Sullivan had earlier clinched the top prize at Connecticut Division Junior Olympic Qualifiers which is an annual competition for American athletes under the age of 20 who compete for a national title.
It comes after she competed for the girls’ teams at Daniel Hand High School in Madison, Connecticut in track and field events and Sullivan came first out of six competitors in the Junior Women’s Foil event in Newtown, Connecticut. The win earned her a ranking of E24 per Fencing Tracker and in the sport, fencers are ranked A (highest) to E (lowest).
Prior to that, age 20 fencer Sullivan ranked 48th out of 50 in a Division I women’s foil event and 31st out 36th in a division II event and last year, Sullivan was competing for the men’s team and 29th in a men’s foil event.
After video of Turner’s protest went viral, the event received a lot of attention, and USA Fencing released a statement on Wednesday endorsing Sullivan. The organization defended its 2023-enacted policy for transgender and non-binary athletes.
The policy “was designed to expand access to the sport of fencing and create inclusive, safe spaces,” according to a statement from USA Fencing.
The organisation added, “The policy is based on the principle that everyone should have the ability to participate in sports and was based upon the research available of the day.”
Stephanie Turner took a knee just before the start of the match and declined to compete against transgender athlete Redmond Sullivan. Turner was consequently sent out of the tournament after receiving a black card from the officials.
The 31-year-old fencer Stephanie Turner decided not to fight trans athlete Redmond Sullivan in the Cherry Blossom Open in Maryland over the weekend. Additionally, Turner wanted to ensure that her refusal was captured on camera for public consumption.
USA fencer Stephanie Turner was scheduled to face Redmond Sullivan at the Cherry Blossom tournament held at the University of Maryland but as the match was about to begin, Turner took a knee and removed her mask in a protest during the Division 1A Women’s Foil event.
She was shown a black card which signifies that a player is immediately excluded from the competition and suspended for the remainder of it. Turner had completed four matches before facing Sullivan, who placed 24th out of 39 in the competition.
Reactions to the incident
On social media, former tennis player Martina Navratilova voiced her displeasure with USA Fencing’s handling of the issue.
“This is what happens when female athletes protest! Anyone here still thinks this is fair??? I am fuming,” she wrote.