Lexi Rodgers, a transgender athlete who is hoping to play in the women’s NBL1 league, has spoken publicly for the first time.
She has called for understanding and kindness after former basketball player Andrew Bogut sparked an at-times offensive debate about whether she should be allowed to play against fellow women.
Rodgers, who wants to play for the Kilsyth Cobras in NBL1 South, spoke with former WNBL MVP Anneli Maley – who has been one of many WNBL players publicly supportive of playing against transgender athletes – on her podcast Under the Surface.
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“It’s good to have a bit of a voice, now, because, when it’s this hypothetical person and people are making a picture of what a transgender athlete looks like in their head, 1: I don’t think it’s me, and, 2: I think it’s a bit harsh and people forget that there’s actually a person,” she said.
“If you don’t get it and you don’t know 1: don’t yell stuff on the internet about it because it’s probably wrong, and, 2: Go and learn about it.
“Please be nice. It has been a hard week, so just try to remember that there’s actual people who are affected by these discussions and these debates.”
Rodgers transitioned over the last few years after being a talented basketball player in her childhood, following a traumatic relationship breakdown and a terminal illness suffered by her mother.
Having first felt feminine around the age of 10 or 11, Rodgers confided with a friend who helped her realise her truth.
“It was overwhelming. It was such a quick move from ‘Oh, I’m going to be a more feminine guy’ to ‘I’m trans, there’s no doubt about it’,” she said.
She is hopeful of playing in the WNBL and even for the Opals though her status in professional basketball will be determined by an eligibility panel.
The panel of Basketball Australia’s chief medical officer Dr Peter Harcourt, triple-Olympian and BA board member Suzy Batkovic and Notre Dame University sports and exercise physician Associate Professor Diana Robinson met on Wednesday, reports News Corp.
