What does South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley think about transgender athletes participating in women’s sports?

With debate continuing to swirl around the notion of transgender participation in women’s sports - especially at the collegiate level - it was curious but not surprising to see the Gamecocks’ head coach questioned about the issue. As for her response, it will likely turn some heads.

Dawn Staley thinks transgender athletes should be allowed to play

If there was one clear takeaway from South Carolina coach Dawn Staley’s comments during her media availability on Saturday, it was that she is in support of transgender athletes being able to participate in women’s sports. With her and the Gamecocks in the final stages of preparation for Sunday night’s national championship game against Iowa, Staley was asked for her position on the topic and first referenced the weight of the question. “Damn, you got deep on me, didn’t you?” she said, before opening up about her feelings.

“I’m on the opinion of, if you’re a woman, you should play. If you consider yourself a woman and you want to play sports or vice versa, you should be able to play. That’s my opinion. You want me to go deeper?” Staley was then asked directly if transgender women should be able to participate in women’s sports, at which point she doubled down on her stance while acknowledging the criticism that she would inevitably receive. “Yes, yes,” Staley said. “So now the barnstormer people are going to flood my timeline and be a distraction to me on one of the biggest days of our game, and I’m OK with that. I really am.”

The transgender issue in the U.S.A. is complex

It’s worth noting that Staley’s counterpart, Iowa head coach, Lisa Bluder, was asked the same set of questions during her own media session later on Saturday but declined to answer, preferring instead to focus on Sunday’s game. “I understand it’s a topic that people are interested in,” Bluder said. “But today my focus is on the game tomorrow, my players. It’s an important game we have tomorrow, and that’s what I want to be here to talk about. But I know it’s an important issue for another time.”

Now, while one might be inclined to criticize Bluder for not laying her cards on the table, the reality is it can’t be denied that she’s preparing her team for the biggest game of their careers so far. Yet, the gravity of the issue at hand can’t be denied either. As has been well documented, the debate surrounding whether or not transgender athletes should be allowed to participate in sports has increasingly become a major talking point across the nation in recent years. Further fueling the fire is the fact that in April 2023, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that would prohibit people who were assigned male at birth, from participating in girl’s and women’s teams at schools that receive funding from the federal government. Entitled the ‘Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act’, the bill was sponsored by Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL) and passed on a party-line 219-203 vote.

To be clear, there has been no further movement on the bill, and given that the Senate remains a Democratic majority, it’s unlikely to pass especially when considering the fact that the White House previously said that the current administration “strongly opposes” the bill, to the extent that if it ever made its way to President Joe Biden’s desk, he would veto it. “Politicians should not dictate a one-size-fits-all requirement that forces coaches to remove kids from their teams,” the White House said in a statement at the time. As for the NCAA itself, the policy regarding the participation of transgender athletes was first enacted in 2010 and then updated most recently in 2022. Today, it is sport-specific and “aligns transgender student-athlete participation with the Olympic Movement” in an effort to balance “fairness, inclusion, and safety for all who compete.” Ultimately, the debate will continue regardless of who says what, something that both Staley and Bluder know, which is likely why they are more focused on Sunday night’s game. Tip-off between South Carolina and Iowa is set for 3:00 p.m. ET. Don’t miss it!