Aryna Sabalenka, the world’s top-ranked women’s tennis player, has weighed in on the contentious topic of trans athlete inclusion, saying she does “not agree” with trans women competing in women’s sport, claiming it’s “not fair” for women to face “biological men”.
The 27-year-old made the comments during an appearance on Piers Morgan Uncensored on Tuesday, 9 December, alongside fellow tennis player Nick Kyrgios. The pair were there to promote their upcoming ‘Battle of the Sexes’ charity match — a match that will ironically pit Sabalenka against a man.
“They still got a huge advantage”
When asked directly about trans athletes competing in women’s sport, Sabalenka stated:
“I have nothing to do against the trans community, but I feel like they still got a huge advantage over the women. I think it’s just not fair for a woman to face basically biological men.”
She continued:
“The woman has been working her whole life to reach her limit, and then she has to face a man who is biologically much stronger. So for me, I don’t agree with this kind of stuff in sport.”
Kyrgios echoed her stance, simply saying:
“I feel the exact same way.”
What are the current rules?
The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) currently allows trans women to compete provided they meet specific conditions:
- A signed declaration stating their gender is female or non-binary
- Consistently low testosterone levels (below 5 nmol/L) for at least two years
The WTA does not require legal gender recognition for eligibility. However, there have been no known trans players competing professionally on the WTA tour in recent years. Research has also shown no significant performance advantage for trans athletes at the elite level.
Historically, trans tennis pioneer Renee Richards played in the WTA during the late 1970s and later coached Martina Navratilova, who has publicly spoken against trans inclusion. On the other side, Billie Jean King, another tennis icon and trailblazing lesbian athlete, has long been pro-trans inclusion.
Testosterone talk and recent controversies
During the interview, Piers Morgan also brought up comments from Marta Kostyuk, who alleged that Sabalenka might have a competitive edge due to higher testosterone levels.
Sabalenka brushed off the accusation:
“All I hear here is just excuses. It’s actually quite funny because she [Kostyuk] is a strong girl, and she probably has more muscles than I do. She looks fit and strong.”
She added that testosterone wasn’t the reason behind Kostyuk’s losses to other top-ranked players.
Meanwhile, the conversation around trans inclusion in tennis continues to evolve. In 2024, Britain’s Lawn Tennis Association banned trans women from competing in some national and inter-club women’s competitions — a move met with significant backlash from LGBTQ+ advocates.
Off the court, Swiss rising star Mika Brunold recently made headlines for coming out as gay, becoming only the second openly gay man on the ATP tour.
