Tennis great Martina Navratilova has once again spoken openly about one of the biggest debates in sports. This time, she questioned fellow tennis legend Billie Jean King and said her public position on transgender athletes does not match the realities of women’s sports. Speaking to OutKick, Navratilova said she believes King has not fully considered the concerns she and others have raised about fairness in female competition.The issue has created a divide between two of the most respected names in tennis. While Navratilova has repeatedly argued that transgender women who were born male should not compete in women’s sports, King has long supported the inclusion of transgender athletes. Over the years, both women have shared different views publicly, and Navratilova’s latest comments have brought that disagreement back into the spotlight.
Martina Navratilova questions Billie Jean King’s support for transgender athletes in women’s sports
During the interview with OutKick, Martina Navratilova said Billie Jean King’s position on transgender athletes “doesn’t square” with what she sees as the physical differences between males and females.“I think she thinks that they play fair and square, meaning males identify as women, take all the hormones and do everything, like Renée Richards did 50 years ago,” Navratilova said. “And that it’s just nice to include everybody.”Navratilova then explained why she believes inclusion has limits when it affects opportunities for female athletes. To make her point, she used a basketball example. She described a situation in which boys who did not make a boys’ team later joined a girls’ team. According to Navratilova, that would result in girls losing places that otherwise would have gone to them.“That’s not equality,” Navratilova said. “That’s a total takeover.”She also shared what she believes is the answer to the issue.“The solution is obvious,” she told OutKick. “No male bodies in women’s sports and no male bodies in women’s sex-based spaces for many different reasons, not the least of which is women’s rights to safety, dignity and fairness and privacy.”Navratilova also revealed that she has had private discussions with King about the topic. According to her, King had expressed interest in talking more about the issue and had acknowledged that Navratilova had spent considerable time studying it.“Billie Jean has repeatedly told me over the last four or five years that she would love to talk to me about it, that she defers to me because I know a lot more about it than she does,” Navratilova said.However, Navratilova said those deeper conversations never happened. Because of that, she feels King may not have fully heard arguments from the other side of the debate.“Without talking to me really and listening to what my points were, she just went her way and put out the statement by her and the Women’s Sports Foundation about inclusion and all this stuff,” Navratilova said.She added, “Please get Billie Jean on record. I’d like to know how she explains it because she hasn’t been able to explain it to me.”