Former NCAA athletes and coaches, including California Family Council’s Outreach Director Sophia Lorey, held a rally this week at the NCAA Convention in Arizona protesting rules that permit men, who identify as female, to play women’s sports.
Lorey spoke at the “We Won’t Back Down” rally with other college athletes such as Riley Gaines, a 12-time All-American swimmer, and Christy Mitchell, the mother of Chelsea Mitchell, a distinguished all-American long-jumper with multiple state titles in sprint and jump events. Thursday’s rally in Phoenix, Arizona called on the NCAA, as the regulatory authority for college sports, to put an end to its unfair treatment of female athletes.
The NCAA’s policy permits men who believe they are women to participate in women’s sports teams, provided they meet specific hormone requirements for their sport. However, research indicates that reducing testosterone levels does not fully negate the inherent physical advantages males have.
“The policies of the NCAA and President Charlie Baker are taking away the chance for girls who have trained their whole lives to be college athletes as they lose their spots, scholarships, and safety to men,” Lorey said. “As an athlete, there is nothing I hate more than losing. We are in this fight to win it. NCAA must fix its policy and stop crushing girls’ dreams. We won’t back down; women have come too far to be erased, we will win this fight and truth will prevail.”
Lorey has been receiving national media attention since the summer when a librarian stopped her from speaking at the “Forum on Fair and Safe Sports for Girls.”. The event was hosted by the Yolo County Moms for Liberty and held at the Mary L. Stephens Davis Branch Library in Davis, California. The subject of her talk centered around the unfairness of allowing males who identify as women to participate in women’s sports.
Lorey began by saying that her “dream” as a young girl was to play college soccer. “But current 10-year-old girls cannot live out this same dream as long as men are allowed to compete in women’s sports,” she said. “Allowing biological men in women’s sports does not create an equal playing field, [and] instead robs young biological girls of their athletic aspirations.”
Shortly after Lorey began speaking, several audience members started shouting, alleging that she was “misgendering” trans-identifying athletes. The librarian agreed and prevented her from finishing her speech.
Christy Mitchell is speaking out because one of her daughters was forced to compete against a male in the 100-meter dash at the Connecticut State Open Championship in 2017.
“To the leadership at the NCAA—please stop turning a deaf ear to the concerns of women who are insisting on fair and safe competition. Please stop turning a blind eye to the mountains of scientific evidence confirming that male advantage can never be erased or undone. It is time to show leadership, apologize for the harm that’s been done by these ill-advised policies and commit to ensuring women will have a protected female category in collegiate sports going forward,” she said.
In addition to Lorey and Mitchell, other current or former female athletes, including Riley Gaines, Paula Scanlan, Kaylee Alons, Macy Petty, and others, spoke at the rally.
As these women bravely step forward to voice their concerns, their fight for fairness in women’s sports is gaining momentum and drawing national attention. As more voices join this chorus, the pressure mounts on the NCAA to reconsider its stance and acknowledge the scientific evidence that supports a distinct female category in sports. Christians, or anyone who still believes in basic biology, cannot back down until true fairness and safety in women’s sports are restored.
