The female fencer disqualified for refusing to fight a biological male opponent has lifted the lid on the shocking pro-trans culture at USA Fencing.
Stephanie Turner, 31, was competing in a tournament at the University of Maryland when she took a knee and walked out of her match against trans rival Redmond Sullivan, who was born a man.
After refusing to compete, Turner was issued a ‘blackcard’ by fencing officials – which suspended her from the competition. The controversial decision has sparked outrage on social media among users left dismayed by a female athlete being punished for choosing not to line up against a biological male.
Despite the uproar, USA Fencing has issued a statement justifying its decision while supporting Sullivan, 20, and the inclusion of trans athletes in women’s sports.
In an exclusive interview with DailyMail.com, fencing star Turner revealed she has been scared to reach out to USA Fencing with her concerns, given the pro-trans views of high-ranking officials within the governing body.
She namechecks Damien Lehfeldt – an At-Large Director on the USA Fencing Board of Directors – who runs a blog named ‘The Fencing Coach’ and has previously written a passionate defense of the inclusion of trans athletes in women’s sports.
The female fencer (right) disqualified for refusing to fight a male opponent (left) has lifted the lid on the shocking pro-trans culture at USA Fencing
Stephanie Turner, 31, took a knee and walked out of her match against a transgender rival
Incredibly, Lehfeldt also posted a series of fake email exchanges to his Instagram account in 2023 (now deleted), in which he publicly dismantled various anti-trans arguments.
In screenshots seen by DailyMail.com, and published below, Lehfeldt claimed to have received an email from ‘Dorothy’, who said their ‘girls’ were leaving women’s fencing as the sport doesn’t ‘respect real women’ or recognize ‘there will always be two distinct DNAs’.
Responding to the ’email’, Lehfeldt said: ‘Dear Dorothy, the year is 2023 and as it turns out, you’re not in Kansas anymore. My daughter will compete against women, period. If she loses to a woman of any variety, I’m not going to pull her from the sport and write a whiny email announcing my departure.
‘That’s a great lesson to teach your kids. At this rate, they’ll overcome adversity with the same zeal as a livid Karen in a department store. You don’t deserve the name “Dorothy”. You’re a cowardly Lion and the only wizard that’s going to dig you out of the myopic hole you’ve put yourself and your family in is one of the “grand wizard” variety. You bore me with these emails. Be on your merry way down the yellow brick road.’
In a conversation with our reporter, Lehfeldt confirmed that the email exchanges were ‘not real’, despite them being posted as though they were legitimate conversations.
Turner, seemingly unaware that the posts were fake, told DailyMail.com: ‘Damien Lehfeldt had been getting emails from people stating that they were concerned and that they were really upset about the transgender policy.
‘He would screenshot their emails and send them personal attacks, and then he would post the emails onto Instagram, almost doxing them.’
Sullivan switched college team last year and has since competed against women
Turner says she was scared to reach out to USA Fencing officials like Damien Lehfeldt (above)
Revealing more about her fears over reaching out to the governing body, Turner explained: ‘I was like, I don’t even want to reach out because if I do, then I won’t ever have a fair bout in my life.
‘There are a lot of people who are for this [trans athletes in women’s sports] who are referees. I would lose favor within the sight of referees and I could end up with a biased bout. I could lose friends who I don’t know what their position is on this.
‘So what I was doing already was just avoiding tournaments where I knew there was a transgender fencer. But at this point, what else should I do? Should I just not sign up for any tournaments? I have no other options.’
In his blog post, first published in August 2023 and still available online, Lehfeldt wrote: ‘Transgender fencers deserve the right to compete with the gender they identify with, and those of adult age should comply with the competition guidelines and regulations outlined by USA Fencing and the IOC—even if the science [of] those IOC guidelines might be imperfect.’
It also adds: ‘There is a possibility that transgender women have a physical advantage over their cisgender opponents after transitioning. There is also a possibility they do not. In Fencing, there is no data to support either viewpoint.’
In a further comment on Thursday night, Lehfeldt told DailyMail.com: ‘I’d encourage you to reach out to our own members and you will find a common theme of polite and cordial discussion with me regarding a very complex topic.
‘I always welcome a nuanced and respectful debate, and that includes Ms. Turner. Ms. Turner is welcome to her opinions. That’s the beauty of discourse. We can come to the table and agree to disagree.’
In now-deleted posts on Instagram, Lehfeldt created fake email conversations with ‘Dorothy’
In one fake email, he ripped into a concerned ‘Dorothy’ and called her a ‘cowardly Lion’
USA Fencing added in a statement: ‘USA Fencing enacted our current transgender and non-binary athlete policy in 2023. The policy was designed to expand access to the sport of fencing and create inclusive, safe spaces.
‘The policy is based on the principle that everyone should have the ability to participate in sports and was based upon the research available of the day. We understand that the conversation on equity and inclusion pertaining to transgender participation in sport is evolving.
‘USA Fencing will always err on the side of inclusion, and we’re committed to amending the policy as more relevant evidence-based research emerges, or as policy changes take effect in the wider Olympic & Paralympic movement.’
Turner meanwhile, who says she has not been contacted by USA Fencing since her refusal to fight Sullivan went viral this week, feels strongly about protecting women’s rights in all sports. So strongly, in fact, that it led her away from the Democratic party and towards Donald Trump in last year’s election.
Trump’s promise to ban transgender athletes from female sports swayed her to the Republicans, with the Democrats’ hesitance to do the same proving a huge cause for concern.
‘This movement shouldn’t be political, but I do find there is one party that has been totally captured by radical politics, radical social politics that have acted as sort of a litmus test to let me know whether a politician is willing to lie just to advance their own political career,’ Turner continued.
‘That just opened the door for me to start listening more to the other side, really. Because if you’re willing to lie to me and tell me that a man can become a woman, then I wonder what else could you be lying to me about?’
Turner, whose disqualification for refusing to face a trans rival has sparked uproar, says she feels sympathy for Sullivan but is most concerned with USA Fencing’s gender policy
While she strongly disagrees with her decision to switch over to her college’s women’s team, Turner admits she feels some sympathy for Sullivan amid the angry reaction on social media.
After the controversial incident, fans have taken to social media to blast USA Fencing for disqualifying a female competitor and allowing a transgender athlete to take part.
One user posted on X: ‘You allow biological men to compete with women thus stripping women from reaching their dreams. Shame on you!’
‘Why are you disqualifying women and not the transgenders invading women’s sports,’ asked another.
It should be noted that fencing athletes are allowed to compete against the opposite sex, and Turner herself has competed against, and beaten, men in recent bouts.
Tennis legend Martina Navratilova, who has frequently spoken out against transgender women competing in female sport in recent years, also weighed in on the controversy by saying: ‘And again….’
But Turner insists her biggest issue is with the organization running the sport in America.
‘[Sullivan] is quite young, and I believe maybe he’s caught up into this gender movement, and perhaps 10 years down the line, he might be a completely different person,’ she clarified.
‘But my gripe is not with him. It’s with the USFA, its board members and this policy. He is following this policy, yes, but in principle it’s not a good policy. You’re allowing men who have their male athletic advantage over women and forcing them to compete against women.
‘So I feel sympathy in the fact that maybe he’s gotten a lot of hate in the last 24 hours. But at the same time, I’ve been dealing with this for the past four to five years, trying to find avenues to reach the USFA so that they can take down this policy.
‘I’m going to prioritize my own physical safety and the safety of other women and girls over this.’
