Stephanie Turner, the female fencer who took a knee in protest instead of facing her transgender opponent, is taking time away from the sport after USA Fencing handed her a 12-month probation for her stance.
Turner was disqualified from USA Fencing’s Cherry Blossom Open last month after refusing to face Redmond Sullivan, a 20-year-old male who competes in the women’s division.
Stephanie Turner said:
— Jennifer Sey (@JenniferSey) April 3, 2025
"It will probably, at least for a moment, destroy my life.”
Turner knelt to stand up for women's sports.
She's a hero.
Doing the right thing is never wrong.
Share this ad to show her she has our support. pic.twitter.com/S8mCHBzMiD
Although USA Fencing’s 12-month probation does not bar her from competing, Turner says she will take a “break from fencing for a while in the US circuit” anyway.
Instead, Turner plans to work to prevent other female athletes from finding themselves in a similar position to herself by joining the fight to keep men out of women’s sports.
“I will remain in the public eye for as long as it takes to resolve this,” she told Fox News.
Turner’s protest resulted in intense backlash and impacted every aspect of her life.
As she told Fox News, the reaction to her protest “has disrupted my training, it has disrupted my interactions when I go out in public, and it will certainly disrupt my competition because I won’t be competing in the United States anytime soon.”
She added, “I’m aware of some of the negative comments that my friends have had, I’m mindful to give them enough space, but I’m sure that, in the future, considering I believe this policy and this ideology to be unsustainable, they’ll come around eventually.”
Turner will be allowed to join that fight and address USA Fencing in particular on May 7. The House Oversight Committee on Delivering on Government Efficiency (DOGE) has invited her to testify alongside Damien Lehfeldt, the USA Fencing board chair and advocate for allowing men to compete in women’s sports.
The hearing will occur amid the U.S. Department of Education’s investigation into USA Fencing and whether it violated President Trump’s executive order titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.” In that order, Title IX was interpreted to prohibit the inclusion of men in women’s sports.
Trump’s executive order reversed a Biden-era interpretation of Title IX that allowed those identifying as transgender to compete in women’s athletics.
“USA Fencing adopted its current trans inclusion policy in 2023,” the New York Post reports.
