A female fencer who was disqualified from a tournament after refusing to compete against a transgender opponent told members of Congress Wednesday she “felt betrayed” by the sport’s governing body, who she said had “defrauded” her and “sold a lie.”
Stephanie Turner, 31, took a knee instead of fencing against Redmond Sullivan, a 20-year-old who was born biologically male, at USA Fencing’s Cherry Blossom Open in Maryland on March 30.
In addition to forfeiting the match, Turner was hit with a 12-month probation period, causing her to step away from the sport.
The night before the scheduled match against Sullivan, Turner recalled to the House DOGE subcommittee, “I cried the whole night and again felt betrayed by USA Fencing.”
“I had already spent the money on competition fees and new equipment, and spent hours training and refurbishing my equipment,” she explained. “I felt trapped. I had been defrauded of a women’s tournament and sold a lie by USA Fencing.”
“I had felt so isolated and strangled by USA Fencing for disagreeing with this transgender policy that I felt scared to speak openly, online, or with friends in the fencing community.”
Read more at https://nypost.com/2025/05/07/us-news/female-fencer-who-took-a-knee-rather-than-face-trans-athlete-recalls-betrayal-by-sports-boss-i-cried-the-whole-night/
The New York Post is your source for breaking news, news about New York, sports, business, entertainment, opinion, real estate, culture, fashion, and more.
Subscribe to New York Post Sports: https://www.youtube.com/c/nypostsports
Catch the latest news here: https://nypost.com/
Follow The New York Post on:
Twitter - https://twitter.com/nypost
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/NYPost
--
Support podtube.me continuity as a free service. Become a Patreon or make an one-time donation
--
Video at Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jzVyBqhN3g