Save Women's Sport Australasia Condemns ABC News for Biased Coverage That Erases Female Athletes' Voices in Transgender Inclusion Debate

Save Women's Sport Australasia (SWSA), a leading advocate for fairness, safety, and

inclusion in women's sports, today issued a strong rebuke of a recent ABC News report on

transgender participation in women's sports.

The taxpayer-funded broadcaster's segment, aired without a single interview from a female

athlete and ignoring mounting evidence of unfair competition, exemplifies how ideological

activism is undermining the integrity of female sports across Australia.

The ABC piece, titled "Transgender athletes in women's sport: The debate continues,"

featured prominent voices from transgender activists and advocates but conspicuously

omitted any perspective from the women and girls directly impacted by these policies. No

female athletes – from community levels to elite competitions – were given a platform to

share their experiences. This glaring imbalance perpetuates a narrative that prioritises one

group's access over the fairness and safety of female participants, who have fought for

decades to secure sex-segregated categories in sport."

ABC News has chosen activism over journalism," said Nerissa Pace, Co Spokeswoman of

SWSA. "By silencing female athletes and cherry-picking sources, they dismiss the lived

realities of girls and women losing opportunities, scholarships, and podium places to

male-bodied competitors. This isn't balanced reporting; it's advocacy funded by Australian

taxpayers, at the expense of half the population."

SWSA highlights the ABC's failure to reference even a fraction of the growing body of

evidence documenting the disadvantages faced by females in mixed-sex competitions:

• In October 2025, an 11-year-old girl in Victoria, Emily, missed out on a spot in her

regional track and field championships after the gifted runner placed third after a

male student with a “trans” identity at her school’s inter-school competition (only

first and second place advanced to the next stage).

• In 2024, a 15-year-old girl in New South Wales lost a regional swimming title to a

transgender female competitor, sparking widespread community backlash and calls

for policy reform.• At the 2023 Australian Open table tennis championships, female players were

outperformed by transgender entrants, leading to multiple withdrawals and protests

from affected athletes.

• The ongoing controversy surrounding Flying Bats FC, a Sydney-based women's

football team with five transgender players, which dominated the 2024 Beryl

Ackroyd Cup (winning every match, including a 10-0 thrashing where one trans

player scored six goals) and the North West Sydney Women’s Premier League

(finishing undefeated with a 5-4 grand final win). Parents and coaches reported fears

for girls' safety, with one trans player allegedly breaking an opponent's leg in two

places during a prior match, leading to over 24 player withdrawals, forfeited games,

and crisis meetings where forfeits were threatened with disciplinary action as

"discrimination."

• Community netball leagues in Victoria and Queensland have reported over 20

instances in the past year where girls aged 12-16 were injured or displaced by

stronger male-bodied participants identifying as female.

These are not isolated anecdotes but part of a national pattern substantiated by sports

governing bodies, including World Athletics and the International Rugby League, which

have restricted transgender participation in women's categories to protect biological

fairness. Yet ABC's report glossed over these facts, offering no counterpoints or data-driven

analysis.

As a not-for-profit dedicated to preserving sex-based categories in sport, SWSA calls on the

ABC to:

1. Issue an on-air correction and commit to inclusive journalism that amplifies all

stakeholders – especially the female athletes whose rights are at stake.

2. Immediately cut all formal and informal ties with ACON, the activist organisation

whose Pride in Sport program has embedded gender-identity ideology into

Australian sporting codes, media, and public institutions, compromising journalistic

independence and fair play.

3. Urge the Australian government to review public broadcaster funding guidelines to

ensure taxpayer dollars support objective reporting, not ideological agendas.

For more information on SWSA's campaigns or to support our work in safeguarding

women's sports, visit www.savewomenssport.com.au.

View the bias report here:

Save Women's Sport Australasia Condemns ABC News for Biased Coverage That Erases Female Athletes' Voices in Transgender Inclusion Debate

Save Women's Sport Australasia Condemns ABC News for Biased Coverage That Erases Female Athletes' Voices in Transgender Inclusion Debate