Tennis legend Martina Navratilova is lending her unfettered public support to Sophie Cunningham as the basketball player continues to make headlines for her anti-trans views.
“Sophie is not ANTI-TRANS- rather she is PRO-WOMEN!!!,” Navratilova, 69, wrote via X on Sunday, August 2. “Wrong headline!”
The former tennis player reshared a post from the Telegraph, in which the news organization referred to Cunningham, 29, as “basketball’s new anti-trans MAGA poster girl.”
A social media user replied to Navratilova’s post, describing the ongoing political discourse surrounding trans athletes competing in sports “a non-issue.”
“There are zero trans athletes in the professional space and only like 10 in the NCAA to which it seems like no one knows their names so it’s not like they are dominating the space,” the user argued. (Fewer than 10 trans athletes compete in collegiate sports as of publication.)
Navratilova doubled down on her support of Cunningham’s anti-trans views, replying, “If it’s such a non issue, why the fuss? Maybe not an issue at WNBA but it sure is an issue in many sports, many countries.”
When another user called out Navratilova for being “anti-trans” too, the athlete fired back, calling the user “anti-women.”
Last month, Cunningham made headlines after she spoke to ESPN about her belief that trans women should not be allowed to compete in sports alongside cisgender women.
“I got a lot of negative feedback about me hating trans. And I’m like, ‘I never once said that,’” the Indiana Fever player told the outlet in July. “I think that I am here to extend love. But I also think, with that, love is truth, being honest. And I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men.”
Cunningham’s controversial remarks earned swift backlash online and among her peers. Days later, the basketball player doubled down on her stance.
“I said what I said,” she told reporters at a July Fever practice. “I think it’s kind of common sense. I think I’ll always believe in that. I think it’s really important to protect children.”
Cunningham continued, “I’m not a very political person but I do have beliefs. I have morals and I’ll always stand on those and be true to who I am. People are going to take it how they want to take it, but I never really said anything about that. When it comes to protecting young girls in sport and women in sport, I feel very strongly about that.”
Cunningham insisted that despite her desire to exclude certain athletes from competition, she doesn’t “dislike anyone.”
“I think there is room for absolutely everyone here and I think there’s room to love everyone,” she said. “I truly think when you get people in the same room and have conversations, you have a lot in common with a lot of people. I’m there to love, but I’m also there to love biological women and I think there are rights that need to be protected. Whatever I say, I’m going to get hate and I’m going to get love. I beat to my own drum. People are always going to have something to say.”
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