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Women’s tennis legend Martina Navratilova has been outspoken in her opposal to transgender athletes competing in women’s sports.
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In an op-ed for the Sunday Times, Navratilova referred to trans women as men who “decide to be female,” and that to allow them to compete with women is “cheating and unfair.”
Athlete Ally, a pro-transgender athletes organization, come out against Navratilova for her statements.
“Trans women athletes aren’t looking to take over women’s sport. They are women, and want to compete in the sport they love, just as any other athlete would. In fact, they’re largely underrepresented. Trans athletes have been allowed to openly compete in the Olympics since 2003, and yet no transgender athlete has ever gone to the Olympics. Professional trans women athletes are extremely rare,” they said.
“Public figures like Martina Navratilova have an incredible platform provided to them, and when they speak, the world listens. When we launched our Ambassador program in 2011 and invited Martina to join us, we saw her as a trailblazer for LGBTQ people in sports-someone who, like us, believed in the power of sport to advance equality, dismantle stereotypes, and build a more inclusive society.”
But the iconic women’s tennis star is standing by her opinions.
Now, she’s standing by Sophie Cunningham.
Navratilova calls out ‘false’ headlines about Sophie Cunningham
Sophie Cunningham has said that she wants to “protect” female athletes from transgender athletes in sports.
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“I said what I said. I think it’s kind of common sense,” Cunningham told reporters. “And I think I’ll always believe in that. I think it’s really important to protect children, and that’s little girls who are also involved in that category. I stand on what I said.”
Some headlines have accused Cunningham of being anti-transgender, though Navratilova says that’s not the case.
“Sophie is not ANTI-TRANS- rather she is PRO-WOMEN!!! Wrong headline!” she wrote.
Both Navratilova and Cunningham have made it clear where they stand, that’s for sure.
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This story was originally published August 2, 2026 at 3:00 PM.