{"id":658445,"date":"2026-05-09T15:54:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-09T15:54:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/658445\/"},"modified":"2026-05-09T15:54:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-09T15:54:09","slug":"womens-tennis-legend-speaks-out-on-california-trans-athlete-controversy-as-newsom-faces-criticism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/658445\/","title":{"rendered":"Women’s tennis legend speaks out on California trans athlete controversy as Newsom faces criticism"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Women’s tennis legend Martina Navratilova weighed in on the sudden trans athlete controversy in Gavin Newsom’s<\/a> California, with the girls’ high school track and field championships coming up.<\/p>\n

A trans athlete is set to compete in the girls’ tournament this year, after winning multiple state finals last<\/a> year. California is continuing to let biological males compete in girls’ sports under Newsom’s leadership, prompting criticism from many activists.<\/p>\n

Navratilova cheered on two gold-medal-winning women’s Olympians who spoke out against Newsom on Friday.<\/p>\n

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Martina <\/p>\n

Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert hold a joint press conference on Day 5 of the GNP Seguros WTA Finals in Cancun, Quintana Roo, Mexico, on Nov. 2, 2023. (Artur Widak\/NurPhoto)<\/p>\n

The tennis legend shared a Fox News Digital article of women’s Olympic gold medalists Nancy Hogshead and Kaillie Humphries addressing the track and field controversy.<\/p>\n

“Right on Nancy!!! We are just built different!!!” Navratilova wrote in an X post sharing the article.<\/p>\n

In a response to the post, Navratilova argued to another user that Newsom could take action to protect girls’ sports in California.<\/p>\n

“Newsom could overturn this in a second. No excuse,” Navratilova wrote.<\/p>\n

MARTINA NAVRATILOVA ‘MAD’ THAT REPUBLICANS ARE MORE OUTSPOKEN THAN DEMS ABOUT TRANS ATHLETES IN GIRLS SPORTS<\/a><\/p>\n

In a later post on Saturday, Navratilova re-shared news that the trans athlete, representing Jurupa Valley High School, is seeded first in the upcoming tournament.<\/p>\n

“Cheating\u2026 which at the moment the rules allow. Thanks for nothing [Gavin Newsom],” Navratilova wrote.<\/p>\n

Navratilova, like Hogshead, is a vocal advocate for protecting women’s sports despite supporting Democrats on other issues.<\/p>\n

\"Jenna <\/p>\n

Jenna Johnson, Nancy Hogshead, Carrie Steinseifer and Dara Torres of the United States celebrate winning the women’s 4×100-meter freestyle relay during the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games at Olympic Swim Stadium. (Porter Binks-USA TODAY NETWORK)<\/p>\n

Hogshead responded to a statement from a source within Newsom’s office<\/a> on the issue that stated, “The Governor has said discussions on this issue should be guided by fairness, dignity, and respect,” regarding the upcoming track meet and a planned protest against the trans athlete at the meet.<\/p>\n

“Governor Newsom seems to exclude girls from his own standard of ‘fairness, dignity and respect.\u2019\u00a0It is impossible to include a male \u2014 however they identify \u2014 into girl\u2019s sports and have a fair competition, respecting and dignifying the unique biology of females. Females aren\u2019t weakened males; males and females are built from different molds, so different that it justifies formal, government-sanctioned sex segregation,” Hogshead told Fox News Digital.<\/p>\n

Hogshead, who represented the U.S. at the 1984 Summer Olympics<\/a>, where she won three gold medals and one silver medal in swimming, has become a prominent activist in the fight to save women’s sports, despite being a lifelong Democrat. Hogshead is also a civil rights lawyer.<\/p>\n

MOST CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS OPPOSE TRANS INCLUSION IN GIRLS AND WOMEN’S SPORTS: SURVEY<\/a><\/p>\n

“The government never segregates racially and religiously, but we do segregate by sex because of biology, material reality. Girls and women rely on that formal sex segregation to have the possibility of equality in sport. Governor Newsom needs to include the girls competing in track in his own analysis. As a law professor, this is a big fail,” she continued.<\/p>\n

Humphries, who is a tax-paying California citizen and rising Trump ally in the effort to protect women’s sports, criticized Newsom as well. Humphries has won three Olympic gold medals in bobsled for the U.S. and Canada and six medals in total, making her the most decorated women’s bobsledder in history.<\/p>\n

“There is nothing fair about allowing boys to take opportunities from girls in sports. It\u2019s just the left\u2019s thinly veiled misogyny. Governor Newsom should be focusing on California hosting the Olympics which actually knows the difference between men and women and quit pushing his woke agenda which is out of the mainstream of the American public,” Humphries told Fox News Digital.<\/p>\n

The source within Newsom’s office responded to news that a “Save Girls Sports” protest<\/a> will be held on Saturday at the site of a track and field playoff meet.<\/p>\n

“The Governor has said discussions on this issue should be guided by fairness, dignity, and respect. He rejects the right wing\u2019s cynical attempt to weaponize this debate as an excuse to vilify individual kids. The Governor\u2019s position is simple: stand with all kids and stand up to bullies,” a source within the governor’s office told Fox News Digital on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

“California\u00a0is\u00a0one\u00a0of 22 states that have laws requiring students be permitted to participate in sex-segregated school sports consistent with their gender identity. California passed\u00a0this law\u00a0in 2013 (AB 1266) and it was signed into law by Governor<\/a> Jerry Brown.”<\/p>\n

After Jurupa’s trans athlete won first place<\/a> in triple jump and high jump, and second place in long jump, President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice launched a lawsuit against California state agencies for alleged Title IX violations last July.<\/p>\n

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Trump’s administration cracked down with a more targeted investigation of JUSD in January. The U.S. Department of Education announced JUSD specifically would be investigated for potential Title IX violations, along with 17 other institutions.<\/p>\n

Follow Fox News Digital\u2019s\u00a0sports coverage on X<\/a>,\u00a0and subscribe to\u00a0the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Jackson Thompson is a sports reporter for Fox News Digital covering critical political and cultural issues in sports, with an investigative lens. Jackson’s reporting has been cited in federal government actions related to the enforcement of Title IX, and in legacy media outlets including The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Associated Press and ESPN.com.<\/p>\n