Piers Morgan blows up over Women’s World Cup first openly transgender player

Piers Morgan has launched a staggering rant over a transgender player who is facing the Matildas at the Women’s World Cup.

Quinn of Canada taking on Nigeria at the 2023 WWC. Picture: William West / AFP

Piers Morgan has launched into a rant over the historic moment Quinn became the first openly transgender and nonbinary athlete to play at a Women’s World Cup.

The Canadian star will play against Australia on July 31 after featuring in the team’s second pool match against Ireland on Thursday.

The midfielder and their team is being widely praised for making minimal fuss about the historic occasion when they stepped onto the field during their team’s draw with Nigeria last week.

Quinn came out as non-binary in September 2020, dropping their former first name and now identifies with the they/them pronouns.

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They said recently, after coming out, they do not plan to increase their testosterone levels, or medically transition through other methods, while playing professionally, the BBC reports.

The biological woman, who debuted for their country in 2014, was one of the star’s in Canada’s run through to win the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

They told the Streets of Toronto publication before the tournament opener that they had been embraced by their teammates from the start.

“Seeing the women’s national team and fortunately being able to interact with some of them was hugely important for me in understanding that there was a pathway for me,” they said.

They told another news agency: “Being a transgender athlete, it was difficult to see my place in sports and see that I belong,” they said.

“And the same goes for cisgender girls who are navigating their experience; we have a male-dominated sports culture in North America and they deserve to see they have a place in this sport.

“It’s so important for young soccer players to have role models in sport. Seeing the women’s national team and fortunately being able to interact with some of them was hugely important for me in understanding that there was a pathway for me.”

While Canada did little to draw attention to Quinn’s historic moment last week, they were widely celebrated as a trailblazer.

Quinn of Canada taking on Nigeria at the Women’s World Cup. Picture: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

However, not everyone has celebrated Quinn’s presence at the 2023 Cup. British commentator Piers Morgan has been a high profile voice in calling for transgender athletes to be banned from women’s sport.

Morgan on Wednesday told a panel on the Sky News Australia Uncensored talk show that Quinn should not be permitted to play in the tournament because they identify as non-binary.

“How can you be transgender and non binary?” he said. “You both know this is such crap.”

He went on to say: “She’s a biological woman playing against other biological women. If she doesn’t identify as a woman, why is she playing in the FIFA Women’s World Cup?

Quinn of Canada takes on Australian Michelle Heyman during a 2016 match. Picture: AAP Image/Lukas Coch

“They don’t qualify for the Women’s World Cup because they used to be a woman. Now they don’t want to be a woman so now we have to call them they for being a transgender even though they are non-binary and they’re playing in the Women’s World Cup and we’re all supposed to go, ‘Well done Quinn. What a moment’.”

The view from Canada is very different.

Har Johal, a Canadian freelance journalist that has covered Quinn’s entire career said: “It’s ground-breaking, historic.

“It shows people who watch sport that you can be non-binary and still play fantastic sport.

“Quinn is a great footballer and amazing person. Happy and comfortable, that’s all you want to be as a professional athlete to play your best.”

She went on to say: “There will always be rubbish, people with closed minds who want to change laws,” Johal told the BBC.

“I hope that when they see an athlete like Quinn, they are a regular and normal person.”