07/31/26 09:57:00
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07/31 21:55 CDT Sophie Cunningham says she's not concerned about being a
distraction for the Fever
Sophie Cunningham says she's not concerned about being a distraction for the
Fever
By ANNE M. PETERSON
AP Sports Writer
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) --- Sophie Cunningham says she's unconcerned that the
rallies against transgender participation in women's sports that have
accompanied the Indiana's Fever's recent games are a distraction for the WNBA
team.
Cunningham made the comments before the Fever's game Friday night against the
Portland Fire. Outside, a group rallied for the second straight game in support
of Cunningham and her recent comments about transgender athletes.
"I think at the end of the day, I come in and I do my job," Cunningham said. "I
think everyone who knows me personally, they know that I'm full of love. I'm
bubbly. I love the people around me. I love basketball. I love inspiring the
next generation and doing that in a positive light. And so that doesn't even
cross my mind. Doesn't cross my teammates' minds.
"And again, I'm here to play basketball, but I'm also here to be me, and I'm
not gonna like shadow that or hide or, you know, dim my light just because
maybe people don't agree with that."
Portland's rally came after a similar rally for Cunningham earlier in the week
before the Fever's game at the Seattle Storm. Both rallies only attracted about
two dozen participants and a bevy of onlookers.
"I have honestly had nothing to do with them," Cunningham said. "I think it's
people just practicing their rights of freedom of speech and doing what other
fans have been doing since the WNBA has started. And so props to them, props to
everyone who is able to be competent and be bold and courageous enough to to
speak their truths."
Another rally was planned for Sunday in Minneapolis when the Fever play the
Minnesota Lynx.
In Seattle on Monday, two Cunningham supporters sat courtside at Climate Change
Arena holding signs. A co-owner of the Storm, Celeste Keaton was later fined an
undisclosed amount and suspended for five games by the WNBA for an exchange
with the two supporters.
The Storm also apologized for the incident, but did not provide details about
the exchange.
"We remain committed to creating a welcoming and respectful environment for
anyone who attends a Storm game," the Storm said.
The Seattle rally promoted statewide ballot initiative, IL26-638, that would
bar transgender students from participating in girls' athletics at Washington
schools. It also praised Cunningham, who voiced support for barring transgender
athletes from girls' and women's sports in recent interviews.
"I am here to be a cheerleader for Sophie Cunningham, who has so bravely put
her head above the parapet to protect women and girls in our sports and in our
locker rooms," said Amy Souza, who was among those at the rally. "I was an
organizer of this event, I was a co-organizer of the Seattle event. I'm also
here, standing in solidarity with those teen girls who, unfortunately, were
harassed when they were just trying to be fans of the sport, fans of Sophie
Cunningham."
Cunningham was booed by the Moda Center crowd in Portland when she entered the
game midway though the first quarter. Many waved small pink, blue and white
transgender flags.
The Fever entered the game on a four-game winning streak and had won eight of
their last 10. Coach Stephanie White said she was concerned that the
controversy was distracting from the team's play.
"You know there is a frustration, of course, because we want to we want to talk
about basketball and we want to continue to work on our game and we want to
continue to grow as a team.," White said. "But I also understand this is part
of our growth edge as a league, right? It's part of our growth as a league, and
we have to to be able to manage, we have to be able to insulate as much as we
can, and then we have to be able to lead with conversation."
___
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
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