Must read:Transgender darts player releases statement after two team-mates refused to play…….read more
Noa-Lynn van Leuven has caused plenty of controversy after winning on the PDC Women’s Series.
By Jack McEachen
Noa-Lynn van Leuven.
Noa-Lynn van Leuven won on the PDC Women’s Series. (Image: PDC.)
Transgender darts star Noa-Lynn van Leuven has spoken out after the backlash following her victory in Wigan last week, beating the likes of Fallon Sherrock on the PDC Women’s Series. That has led to two of Van Leuven’s team-mates pulling out of the Netherlands national team together.
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Aileen de Graaf and Anca Zijlstra took issue with Van Leuven’s eligibility to compete against women, adding to the outrage that has taken place on social media. Tennis legend Martina Navratilova complained that women have the “short end of the stick” in response to Van Leuven’s success.
Both De Graaf and Zijlstra released statements confirming their decision to withdraw from the Dutch team for the Four Nations tournament on April 13 and 14.
“The moment when you feel ashamed to play for the Dutch team because a biological man plays on the women’s team, it’s time to go,” Zijlstra wrote. “I have tried to accept this, but I cannot condone or condone it. I believe that sports should be an equal and fair playing field, handled and accepted as such in good conscience. After all, we have worked so hard to be relevant and competitive in this sport.”
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Fallon Sherrock was defeated by Noa-Lynn van Leuven. (Image: Getty)
De Graaf then added: ”At some point you have to make choices when something goes against your feelings. You have to do what feels right for you. Hence my decision to leave the Dutch team.”
That has led to Van Leuven responding via Dutch outlet NOS, as she said: “I don’t really feel the need to go further into it. This has been their choice and not mine. I think the only unfortunate thing about this issue is that a lot of people forget that I am also a human being.”
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Victory over Katie Sheldon in the final in Wigan came a week after Van Leuven became the first trans woman to win a PDC Tour event on the Challenge Tour in Hildesheim, Germany.
After joining the Women’s Series in 2022, Van Leuven explained that she might not be alive today if had she not transitioned. “I think if I didn’t have the transition, I wouldn’t be here anymore,” she told the Press Association.
“The last two years before I transitioned were terrible for me, I was depressed, I wasn’t having fun in life. I didn’t have anything to live for, I wasn’t in a good space. Then I realised I am trans, I should do something with that or I am not going to make anything out of my life.
“Now I am happy again and I have so much to live for. I really love darts, I love playing it, I love meeting new people and travelling and that is all possible because of darts.”