Former NFL Star Gronkowski Defends Women’s Sports
“There’s really no argument.”
Retired NFL player Rob Gronkowski, otherwise known as a New England Patriot legend after 11 seasons and four Super Bowl wins, was recognized this week in the U.S. Capitol by a Daily Caller reporter. Meeting the stride of the tight end, the reporter asked, “Mr. Gronkowski … should men be allowed to play in women’s sports?” Gronkowski remained silent, but with eyebrows raised, he emphatically shook his head no.
Later, Gronkowski explained why he didn’t offer a verbal reply because he didn’t believe there was a need for one. “There should really be no conversation about it,” he said. “There are men’s sports for men, there’s women’s sports for women. It should just stay like that. … There’s really no argument.”
According to polling, most Americans agree with Gronkowski’s perspective: This is a simple situation with a simple solution. But the very question asked by the Daily Caller reporter has been a source of tremendous controversy of late — in many cases, even resulting in violence. A recent example of such hostility was just this week at Penn State University when NCAA All-American swimmer Riley Gaines tried to speak on behalf of “Real Women’s Day.” During the event, two people were detained by police after causing disturbance, shouting thinks like “I hope you … die,” and name-calling.
Protestors also spewed profanity. Because of their behavior, state Senator Cris Dush (R-Pa.) threatened to pull funding from Penn State. “I support the people who are here like Riley Gaines,” he announced. “You wanna lose $150 million dollars to the campus for your friends? I’m state Senator Cris Dush, if you guys don’t behave yourselves, you very well [might].”
Dush shared that for those protesters, “It’s all about feelings and emotions and not about having a real intellectual discourse about the issues.” If the campus wants to articulate the importance of free speech, they need to do it in a worthy manner, he explained. “We hold the purse strings for an awful lot of universities in Pennsylvania. We can make them sit up and take notice that [they] have a responsibility [to uphold].”
The backlash Gaines experiences on a daily basis didn’t stop Gronkowski from speaking out. Already, other athletes have rallied to his side, including American commentator and golfer Andrew Giuliani, who posted on X, “Well said Gronk, please keep standing up for the right for women to compete fairly in sport!” Others shared, “It’s … common sense,” and “The World According to Gronk seems a perfect example for the rest of us.”
The mob who supports men destroying women’s sports may be loud and aggressive, but they certainly do not represent all Americans. Gronkowski is but one voice in the ever-growing movement against men competing in women’s sports. As reporter David Hookstead of OutKick said, “Props to Gronk for having the courage to make his feelings clear. It feels like more and more people are finally willing to speak out against the insanity going on.”
Sarah Holliday is a reporter at The Washington Stand.
