Olympic gold medalist urges WNBA to define female-only eligibility - RAW CHILI

WASHINGTON (TNND) — The WNBA spent this summer grappling with a debate over eligibility in women’s sports, after comments from Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham ignited protests and backlash across the league.

Cunningham said biological males do not belong in women’s sports, setting off a chain of reactions that included protests outside arenas and two former NBA players announcing they identify as women and will enter next year’s draft.

The league’s player contract says only women can play in the WNBA, but it does not define what a woman is. A task force met and denounced “bad faith actors,” but left the category open.

Olympic gold medalist Nancy Hogshead-Makar, a civil rights attorney who won three Olympic gold medals in swimming in 1984, started a petition calling for the WNBA to enact female-only eligibility criteria. The petition has more than 20,000 verified signatures and has drawn support from prominent voices, including Charles Barkley.

The WNBA has said there are no immediate eligibility matters. Hogshead-Makar said she believes it is only a matter of time before the issue reaches the league.

“Men have invaded women’s sports at junior high school, high school the NCAA, the Olympic Committee and in the most elite in professional sports and in amateur sports,” Hogshead-Makar told The National News Desk. “So it’s just a matter of time before men also invade the WNBA.”

ESPN published a profile of Cunningham in which she said she wants to protect young girls in locker rooms and sports, saying they should not have to compete against biological men. Cunningham called her position “common sense.” The comments sparked pushback, including from other WNBA players and coaches, with some wearing T-shirts on the sidelines.

Hogshead-Makar said she became more involved in the issue during the controversy surrounding NCAA swimmer Lia Thomas.

“I really got into this fight really hard when Lia Thomas,” she said.

Hogshead-Makar said she believes leagues should adopt policies before a specific athlete becomes the focus of the debate.

“So I think it’s better to come up with a policy when you’re not thinking about who is this going to impact,” she said. “You’re not thinking about. Going after one particular person.”