WATCH: Female Fencer and Trans-Supporting USA Fencing Head Face Off at Heated DOGE Hearing
The battle over women’s sports came to a head for women’s fencing on Wednesday in a heated congressional hearing where female fencer Stephanie Turner took questions alongside USA Fencing Chairman Damien Lehfeldt, who doubled down on allowing trans-identifying men.
Lehfeldt was subpoenaed to appear before the House Oversight Committee’s DOGE subcommittee for the hearing titled, “Unfair Play: Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.”
Turner was disqualified from a Maryland tournament in March for taking a knee and refusing to compete against a trans-identifying male opponent. She ultimately stepped away from fencing altogether.
“It took me nearly three years to get up the courage to come out publicly,” Turner told lawmakers at the hearing. “That knee I took in protest was a cry for help and an act of desperation.”
Turner also explained how biological sex impacts performance in fencing, reminding lawmakers that it is a “combat sport.”
“That knee I took in protest was a cry for help and an act of desperation.”
USA Fencing athlete Stephanie Turner testified before Congress about the painful decision to protest being forced to compete against a male opponent. pic.twitter.com/yVrD2XSB0Q
— ICONS (@icons_women) May 7, 2025
🚨 OUTRAGEOUS: @USAFencing Chair Damien Lehfeldt appears to give the middle finger this morning ahead of a Congressional hearing on the mistreatment of female fencers like Stephanie Turner—who took a knee to protest facing a male opponent and has since left the sport.
Unclear if… pic.twitter.com/n4ELk2T4ue
— ICONS (@icons_women) May 7, 2025
(Read more from “WATCH: Female Fencer and Trans-Supporting USA Fencing Head Face Off at Heated DOGE Hearing” HERE)
Photo credit: Flickr
