Original Article By Amber Harding At OutKick.com:
Female martial artists refused to participate in a tournament last weekend after men took over the women’s category. In an interview with Reduxx, the female athletes expressed a fear for their safety as male competitors have repeatedly infiltrated their sport.
And it worked: As of Saturday, the North American Grappling Association (NAGA) has officially changed its policy regarding transgender athletes.
The Georgia Grappling Championship saw an all-male women’s podium on Oct. 21 as trans-identified men Cordelia Gregory and Corissa Griffith took first and second place. Griffith won four total gold medals in women’s events that day.
The female athletes reportedly were not notified they would be matched up against males.
And this wasn’t supposed to happen anymore.
NAGA received widespread criticism in September after a female Brazilian jiu-jitsu athlete had not been informed she would be competing against a male. Taelor Moore posted a clip of her fight against James “Alice” McPike on her Instagram, noting that a 65-lb weight difference between the two competitors.
Immediately following the backlash, NAGA clarified its policies on transgender inclusion: “NAGA does not require biological women to compete against transgender women. Instead, we give the choice to the biological women and if they decline, they compete in a division only with other biological women.”
According to the athletes, though, this policy was not upheld. The women had no choice.
“I honestly never thought this would actually happen in a contact sport, especially not MY contact sport,” professional martial artists Jayden Alexander said. “When I saw him, I was so shocked I didn’t know how to respond.”
Backlash Against Men Competing In Women’s Jiu-Jitsu
Following last weekend’s event, many people spoke out in support of the female athletes — including OutKick’s Riley Gaines.
“In the name of inclusivity and feminism, males are brutally beating up on women and being awarded for it,” Gaines wrote. “Think about the message this sends.”
Donald Trump Jr. weighed in as well.
“Something I definitely didn’t have on my bingo card a few years ago was Donald Trump Jr. Male Feminist,” Trump Jr. posted on X. “It’s time to stand against this insanity. Where are all the soccer moms? Why have they allowed themselves to be bullied into silence as we all know the don’t believe any of this?”
And tennis legend Martina Navratilova — who has been an outspoken advocate for women in sports — noted the pervasiveness of this problem.
“So not just a couple of athletes here and there?” Navratilova wrote.
Jiu-Jitsu Association Changes Its Policy
During the Oct. 21 tournament, there were more males participating than women in many of the women’s divisions. So some female athletes refused to participate — and rightfully so.
And their actions seemed to have sparked some change at NAGA.
The association officially revised its policy as of Oct. 28.
Division for Cisgender Females:
We will have divisions for only cisgender females. Transgender females will not be entered into these divisions.
Division Options for Transgender Females:
Transgender females must compete in the men’s division. We hope that the simplicity of this revised policy will help to avoid any future occurrences where transgender females enter women divisions. If NAGA staff is informed that a transgender female is in a women’s division, they will be given the choice to go to the men’s division or given a refund.
Whether NAGA actually upholds the new policy is anyone’s guess. But it’s a step in the right direction, and it’s a win for safety and fairness.
When women stand up for themselves, change happens.
