South Carolina Women’s Head Basketball Coach Dawn Staley has the internet buzzing.
Her Gamecocks will take on Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes in the National Championship game on Sunday, but Staley has generated plenty of conversation for something completely unrelated to the game.
Dan Zaksheske from OutKick asked Staley if she supports transgender women playing women’s college basketball.
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Her response follows:
“I’m of the opinion that if you’re a woman, you should play,” Staley said. “If you consider yourself a woman and you want to play sports, or vice versa, you should be able to play.”
Hours later, Iowa coach Lisa Bluder was asked the same question by Zaksheske.
Bluder declined to answer the question.
“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.”
Staley’s of course brought a firestorm of criticism by those opposed to her stance and praise from those who loved how she handled the question.
As of now, the NCAA mandates that transgender women seeking to participate in women’s sports must provide documentation, which includes details such as testosterone levels, to the NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports.
Subsequently, the committee’s medical review panel assesses this information to determine eligibility for participation.
