Why the left won’t win on transgender athletes in women’s sports

My first job after leaving the Marines was to work with the Ohio State Women’s Ice Hockey team. Although I had served with some truly tough-as-nails women in the Marine Corps, I was still very chauvinistic with my attitude toward women’s athletics — that is, until I actually watched them play.

At Ohio State, I later covered the women’s softball team, including a trip to the NCAA Regionals, and I got to travel with the women’s soccer team.

These ladies were tough, competitive and disciplined. They gave it their all when they competed. A few years later, when I was working at the University of Texas Athletic Department, I got to handle season ticket accounts for the women’s volleyball and basketball teams. A year later, I was at Baylor, attending every women’s basketball game under Hall of Fame coach Kim Mulkey.

My affinity for women’s athletics has only grown since then because I know just how hard they have to compete in their sport, but also with chauvinistic attitudes. And in the last few years, it has been absolute bliss to watch women’s sports explode in terms of viewership, attendance, team expansion, television deals, endorsements, shoe lines and so forth.

I have also seen firsthand the growth with youngsters as they sign up for travel ball and have personalized coaching. (How times have changed!) And it is great that more girls and young women are participating in sports. We are a country that needs participation and encourages it.

It is not just kids playing sports. We have discovered that the best way to get the best results is to have maximum participation resulting in........

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