Mick Hartley

From the Telegraph:

England Ice Hockey refused to stop a transgender player flouting a ban on those born male playing in the female game.

It’s kind of annoying that this is presented as a transgender ban. Yes it is, but the point of course is that it’s a ban on men playing in women’s sport. Anyway…

EIH has also snubbed repeated calls to take action over the result of a fixture in which a hat-trick of goals scored by the player – who Telegraph Sport has chosen not to name – helped a team avoid defeat.

Those born male were banned from domestic female ice hockey from the start of this season following a decision announced by EIH and Ice Hockey UK (IHU) in March last year, shortly before the Supreme Court ruling that only those born female were women under the 2010 Equality Act.

But a transgender player was subsequently allowed to defy the ban in a Women’s National Ice Hockey League (WNIHL) Division 2 South match between Haringey Greyhounds and Solent Amazons in September.

Telegraph Sport has been told EIH officials refused to stop an Amazons player taking part in the fixture despite being warned beforehand the individual had been born male.

The player went on to score three goals and set up another in a 5-5 draw that could have a bearing on promotion and relegation from the division at the end of the season.

Two witnesses present at the match confirmed they were fully aware the player was transgender and had been shocked that no action was taken to prevent the rule breach.

One said a teenage member of the Greyhounds team told him bumping into the adult player – who played men’s ice hockey before transitioning – “was like skating into a brick wall”.

Both said the EIH’s refusal to act had made players and officials afraid to voice their opposition to what had been allowed to occur.

A month after the game, the Women’s Rights Network wrote on social media that the transgender player had been removed from the Amazons’ roster.

That prompted a response from the father of one Greyhounds player, who wrote: “That game’s points should be given to my daughter’s team and Solent should be heavily sanctioned for their weakness and complicity. I even called it at the game that they had a fella playing.”

Ice hockey, it’s worth noting, is a fast and dangerous game, where typical male advantages in speed and strength would be significant – and dangerous for the women players.