- Dawn Staley and South Carolina will face Iowa in Sunday’s national title game
- In 2022, swimmer Lia Thomas became the only transgender national champion
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Legendary South Carolina coach Dawn Staley has controversially claimed that transgender athletes should be allowed to compete in women’s sports.
Speaking a day after her women’s basketball team beat NC State in the March Madness Final Four, advancing to the national championship game against Iowa, Staley said anyone who considers themselves a woman should be free to play.
“I’m of the opinion that if you’re a woman, you should play,” Staley said.
“If you consider yourself a woman and want to play sports, or vice versa, you should be able to do so.”
The 53-year-old, who has spent 16 years in charge of South Carolina, was fully aware that she would provoke criticism and controversy by expressing her stance.
South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said transgender athletes ‘should be able to play’
In 2022, Lia Thomas became the only transgender athlete to win an NCAA national title.
Staley and the Gamecocks will face the Iowa Hawkeyes in the national championship game
“So now people will flood my timeline and be a distraction for me on one of the most important days in our game,” he said. And I agree with that. I really am.’
Hours later, Iowa coach Lisa Bluder declined to talk about it, insisting her focus was on Sunday’s final.
“I understand that it is a topic that interests people. But today my attention is focused on tomorrow’s game and on my players,” he said.
‘It’s an important game we have tomorrow and that’s what I want to be here to talk about. But I know it’s an important topic for another time.’
The rights and restrictions of transgender athletes have become a contentious issue in recent years, spilling over into politics and even the judicial system.
In January 2022, the NCAA changed its policy to allow the rules for each sport to be determined by a national governing body, an international federation or the 2015 Olympic standard.
That change came around the same time transgender athlete Lia Thomas began competing in women’s swimming, even winning a national championship while at the University of Pennsylvania.
In basketball, the NCAA currently deviates from the 2015 Olympic guidance regarding the allowable threshold of testosterone (less than 10 nanomoles per liter). Currently, there are no known transgender women competing in Division I basketball.
