Stephanie Turner, a fencer competing at a USA Fencing event at the University of Maryland, received a black card from referees for refusing to compete against Redmond Sullivan, a male athlete who identifies as a woman.
In an interview with Fox News, Turner, 31, spoke about the moment she removed her fencing mask and stooped on one knee, abstaining from compromising her safety and her stance that women’s sports are only for women.
“‘I’m sorry, I cannot do this. I am a woman, and this is a man, and this is a women’s tournament,’” she recalled telling the referee. “‘And I will not fence this individual.’”
Turner also spoke to Sullivan, after he approached her in confusion, asking if she was OK.
“I’m sorry. I have much love and respect for you, but I will not fence you.”
According to Turner, he told her there is “a member on the board of directors here who supports me” and “a policy that acknowledges me as a woman,” before informing her that she would be black carded.
Competitors who show unsportsmanlike behavior or break serious rules receive a black card penalty, which is expulsion from a tournament or event.
The night before the event, Turner, who refrains from entering events where she would be forced to fence against trans athletes, discovered she would be fencing against Sullivan, who transferred from the men’s fencing team to the women’s team at Wagner College last year.
That night, Turner decided she would not only refuse to compete but she would do so publicly on video, bending on one knee for the world to see.
“I was like, ‘You know what, I’m just going to give it to God,” she said. “If this person shows up to my event and is on my script, then I would take a knee, and that would be God’s will.’”
“I knew what I had to do because USA Fencing had not been listening to women’s objections regarding [its gender eligibility policy].”
A spokesperson for USA Fencing explained to Fox News the rule the referees used to punish Turner.
“According to the FIE (International Fencing Federation) Technical Rules, specifically Article t.113, a fencer is not permitted to refuse to fence another properly entered fencer for any reason,” the spokesperson said. “Under these rules, such a refusal results in disqualification and the corresponding sanctions. This policy exists to maintain fair competition standards and preserve the sport’s integrity.”
The spokesperson said the rules, not her statement, led her to disqualification.
“In the case of Stephanie Turner, her disqualification was not related to any personal statement,” he said, “but was merely the direct result of her decision to decline to fence an eligible opponent, which the FIE rules clearly prohibit.”
The issue even has had an effect on how Turner voted last year.
“I voted red down the ticket this year. It was like waking up to the lies of the mainstream media,” Turner told Fox News. “… Just to watch so many of my friends have this glassy-eyed look while just defending this policy because their brains cannot manage the possibility that their party or their position has been wrong on this, and perhaps this isn’t a civil rights movement, and they have been misled.”
Turner understands that her choice will likely impact her life, especially within her fencing lifestyle.
“It will probably, at least for a moment, destroy my life,” Turner said. “I don’t think that it’s going to be easy for me from now on going to fencing tournaments. I don’t think it’s going to be easy for me at practice. It’s very hard for me to do this.”
