WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert sent a memo to all league teams on Friday addressing the growing public discourse around transgender athlete participation in women’s basketball, as the league prepares to discuss the matter formally at a scheduled meeting next week involving team presidents and general managers.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The memo, obtained by both The Associated Press<\/em> and ESPN<\/em>, outlined three principles guiding the league’s approach: that it would handle the topic “thoughtfully, respectfully, and in alignment with the longstanding values of our league”; that player eligibility rules in the WNBA are, unlike those of many other sports organizations, collectively bargained<\/strong> with the Players Association; and that “preserving the integrity of our game and ensuring fair competition will always remain among the league’s highest priorities.”<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Engelbert also acknowledged the volume of questions teams have been fielding and expressed appreciation for the measured way in which those questions had been handled publicly.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n The debate has unfolded in notable absence of any transgender players currently in or entering the WNBA. The league’s collective bargaining agreement already stipulates that “only players who are women are eligible to play in the WNBA.” The controversy nonetheless intensified last month after Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham<\/strong> publicly supported barring transgender athletes from women’s sports in an ESPN<\/em> feature, a statement that triggered a wave of reaction both inside and outside the league.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Anti-transgender protests subsequently appeared outside Fever away games. One confrontation escalated to the point where a minority owner of the Seattle Storm received a five-game suspension from the league following a verbal altercation with Cunningham supporters. Several coaches and players have spoken out in favour of inclusion in the weeks since. Engelbert’s memo marks the first time the league office itself has formally entered the conversation, beyond that earlier disciplinary action.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Also on Friday, the WNBA Players Association<\/strong> released its own statement, drawing a firm line against hostility directed at any group. “Hate, abuse, and demonization of any person or group of people, including transgender people, only fuel fear, division, and harm,” the statement read, before closing with a pointed declaration: “We will not be used as political pawns.”<\/p>\n<\/p>\n The league has indicated it will continue consultations with teams and the Players Association in the weeks and months ahead.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert sent a memo to all league teams on Friday addressing the growing public discourse around transgender athlete participation in women’s basketball, as the league prepares to discuss the matter formally at a scheduled meeting next week involving team presidents and general managers. The memo, obtained by both The Associated Press and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1404,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37,52],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1405","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nA Dispute With No Trans Players at Its Centre<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n