A female hockey student suffered horrific facial injuries after being hit by a shot from a male opponent.
Footage of the horror accident saw the woman collapse and scream in agony after the ball hit her face, with the male player’s involvement sparking backlash despite being permitted by law of Massachusetts.
The incident occurred Thursday between two varsity teams from Swampscott High School and Dighton-Rehoboth Regional High School, with the former winning thanks to two goals scored by the male player.
In an email sent after the incident, Dighton-Rehoboth Superintendent Bill Runey told alarmed parents that their student’s injury “significantly amplifies the concerns of many regarding player safety.”
Sickening footage shows the moment a hockey player shoots full force at a female opponent.
The injured player immediately falls to the ground in agony, having suffered serious facial injuries, including two missing teeth.
Many viewers of the footage reacted with fury to the male player’s presence on the pitch, due to the unfair physical advantage he holds after puberty.
In the footage, a Dighton-Rehoboth player passed the ball to her male teammate, who controlled it before unleashing a vicious shot.
The ball immediately hit an opponent in the face, leaving her with horrific facial injuries, including the loss of two teeth, which sent her to hospital. His condition is unclear.
Shocked teammates could be seen resting their hands on their knees and comforting each other after witnessing the horrific injury.
Despite the harrowing scenes, the male player’s place on the team was defended by Swampscott Public Schools athletic director Kelly Wolff, who said he had “exactly the same right to participate as any player of the team”.
Wolff identified the player, who is not believed to be transgender, as a 4-year varsity player and co-captain of the team, according to WCVB.
The athletic director’s position that he is allowed to compete is correct under Massachusetts law, which places no restrictions to prevent a male athlete from competing in women’s sports.
Other players could be seen rushing to the injured student’s side after she was hit by the ball.
The players were seen consoling each other and visibly upset after witnessing the horrific injury.
Amid this backlash, the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) released a statement to explain the legal basis that allows men and women to play sports on teams of different genders.
“Massachusetts General Law was originally enacted to protect students from discrimination on the basis of sex and later expanded to protect students on the basis of gender identification,” the MIAA statement said.
“As a result of this law, and in accordance with the interpretative guidance proposed by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, sporting opportunities must be offered to students based on their identified gender, not necessarily the gender assigned to them at the birth. »
In response, Runey said the law is clear but overlooks the risk of diminishing player safety by allowing male players to compete against women.
“For any male athlete participating in a women’s sport, there are no restrictions,” he said.
“So, I’m looking to the MIAA to facilitate some conversations to find common ground in terms of player safety.”
Dighton-Rehoboth Superintendent Bill Runey told alarmed parents that their student’s injury “greatly amplifies many people’s concerns about player safety.”
He continued: “In speaking with an MIAA representative this morning, she shared that the MIAA handbook contains a legal notice explaining how the Massachusetts Equal Rights Amendment makes it legal for men to participate in women’s teams.”
The superintendent said he decided to speak out after seeing “the horror in the eyes of our players and coaches as they greeted their bus last night,” which he said is “proof to me that there needs to be a renewed approach by the MIAA to protect.” the safety of our athletes.
Runey cited previous rules regarding women’s volleyball to explain how to handle the situation, where male players were allowed to compete but could not play on the front line “because their ability to hit the ball created a higher level of risk.” .
Those conditions were deemed illegal and are no longer in effect, Runey added.
