Sophie Cunningham’s comments on transgender athletes participating in sports have reverberated all across the country. In a July 21 ESPN profile, Cunningham said, “I got a lot of negative feedback about me hating trans. And I’m like, ‘I never once said that.’ I think that I am here to extend love. But I also think with that love is truth, being honest. And I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men.”
Cunningham’s stance has gone viral and led to rallies and counterrallies, a statement from the White House, and had people from all corners give their takes on it, including a conflicting one from her own head coach.
Now, Aryna Sabalenka, the world’s No. 1 tennis player in the WTA, is giving her take on transgender participation in light of a new WTA policy.
“The WTA recently announced that, you know, the players will take a one-time gender test. How do you feel about that?” a reporter asked Sabalenka. “The first pro league to go in that direction.”
“If they want to test us all, I’m happy to do that. It’s pretty fair, and let’s keep it that way.”
The world’s No. 1 has no issue with the WTA’s new trans policy.
Thank you, Aryna Sabalenka, for standing up for fairness in women’s sports. pic.twitter.com/0M0Yxrs4ig
— OutKick (@Outkick) August 4, 2026
“I think it’s really important to keep the fairness in our tour, and it’s obvious that biologically, right, the men are way stronger than women,” Sabalenka responded.
“So I feel like it would be not really fair for the women to compete against biological men. So it’s— I believe it took them a little while to make this decision, and I Yeah, I support it, but for me, I’m focusing on myself, on my goals, you know, whatever it takes. If they want to test us all, I’m happy to do that. It’s pretty fair, and let’s keep it that way.”
Interestingly, a former Olympic athlete has revealed with science that transitioned female athletes do not have a biological advantage in sports. Hopefully, Sabalenka educates herself fully on the situation and is able to approach the topic wiht some of the nuance that Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve called for.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.