Nevada governorJoe Lombardo said he supports University of Nevada volleyball players’ decision not to play against San Jose State over the participation on the SJSU team of a transgender woman.
“The student athletes at the University of Nevada, Reno have determined that they do not want to play against San Jose State, and I wholeheartedly respect the decision of the players,” Lombardo posted on X.
“No student athlete should ever be pressured to play a game where they don’t feel safe — period.”
As reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, a “majority” of UNR players gave the university notice Sunday that they intend not to play against the Spartans, the school said in a statement released Monday. The Wolf Pack are scheduled to host San Jose State on Oct. 26.
Per the reporting of Callie Fin of the Review-Journal, UNR released a statement Oct. 3 saying the program planned to play the match despite forfeitures from Mountain West teams Utah State, Boise State and Wyoming. Southern Utah also forfeited a match against the Spartans.
In a full statement attached to Lombardo’s social media post, he added:
“As I’ve said previously, I believe there are competition and safety concerns with this issue, and it’s irresponsible for the NCAA to put student athletes in a position of balancing their personal safety against the schools, competition, and sports they love.
“… The NCAA has a responsibility to address this issue in a consistent way that protects the integrity of women’s sports and the student athletes who participate.”
In September, Brooke Slusser, a junior at San Jose State and co-captain on the team, joined a lawsuit against the NCAA’s inclusion rules. The filing said Slusser no longer wants Spartans senior Blaire Fleming on the team on the allegation that she is transgender.
According to KKOH radio in Reno, Slusser is showing support for UNR athletes who voted to forfeit their upcoming match against her team. As one of 19 athletes who have sued the NCAA over its gender identity policies, Slusser says she felt concerned for the safety of herself and others after realizing one of her teammates was transgender.
