Wyoming women’s tennis association president resigns after biological male allowed to play

Cheyenne Tennis Association President Jackie Fulkrod resigned from her position on the board last week after learning that Brooklyn Ross, a 27-year-old, six-foot trans-identified male from Colorado, would be competing against other women in the annual Wyoming Governor’s Cup tournament.

Fulkrod said in a statement, “I think a man playing against a woman is a very unfair matchup when it’s specifically meant for women in that specific draw.”

“I feel like having a transgender athlete compete in the women’s draw is against my personal integrity and what I believe and value,” she continued.

Recounting the experience when the board made the decision to have Ross play, Fulkrod said, “The people that were in the room, they were upset, visibly upset.”

Ross just finished competing in the NCAA division II tennis season in Texas and started playing at Metro State University in Denver in 2019. Ross has competed in other women’s tournaments around the nation, including in Florida.

Ross said the reception of his competing in other various women’s competitions has “always been positive and good.”

The Wyoming Governor’s Cup is sanctioned by the United Stated Tennis Association (USTA). The USTA is also the “national governing body for the sport of tennis” and promotes the game’s growth.

The USTA's “transgender inclusion policy” dictates that transgender athletes going from the male to female leagues must have “declared that her gender identity is female” and that hormone therapy be “administered in a verifiable manner and for a sufficient length of time to minimize gender-related advantages.”

No length of time or age at the time of starting hormone therapy is mentioned as a guideline.

Fulkrod said that because of the transgender policies for the USTA, the Cheyenne Tennis Association believed it would not be supported by the USTA if Ross were to be banned from competing.

“I feel sad this woman has resigned over this,” Ross said in reaction to Fulkrod's departure. “I feel like there’s no reason to.”