BREAKING NEWSFemale fencer who refused to fight trans rival invited to testify before Congress after viral disqualification READ MORE: Stephanie Turner awarded $5k for taking a knee against trans rival By OLIVER SALT Published: 15:29 BST, 15 April 2025 | Updated: 16:01 BST, 15 April 2025 The female fencer disqualified from a tournament for refusing to face a transgender opponent has been invited to testify before Congress, according to reports. The New York Post has revealed that Stephanie Turner, who took a knee in protest when matched against trans athlete Redmond Sullivan at a Maryland tournament on March 30, has been called upon by the House Oversight Subcommittee on Delivering Government Efficiency (DOGE) to answer questions about the viral incident. Turner, 31, is being invited along with USA Fencing's pro-trans chairman Damien Lehfeldt, who opposes the idea of separate athletic divisions for trans athletes. Lehfeldt is a vocal supporter of trans inclusion in women's fencing, with an August 2023 post on his personal blog arguing that 'transgender women are women and gender is not sex.' 'Transgender fencers deserve the right to compete with the gender they identify with, and those of adult age should comply with the competition guidelines and regulations outlined by USA Fencing and the IOC — even if the science those [sic] IOC guidelines might be imperfect,' he wrote. After refusing to compete against Sullivan, Turner was issued a 'blackcard' by officials - which suspended her from the USA Fencing competition. The female fencer disqualified from a tournament for refusing to face a transgender opponent has been invited to testify before Congress Stephanie Turner, 31, took a knee and walked out of her match against a trans rival in Maryland BREAKING NEWS Shocking update after brave female fencer took knee and refused to fight transgender rival The controversial decision sparked outrage on social media among users dismayed by the punishment of a female athlete for not lining up against a biological male. In an exclusive interview with DailyMail.com earlier this month, Turner revealed she had been scared to reach out to USA Fencing with her concerns, given the pro-trans views of high-ranking officials within the governing body. She namechecked Lehfeldt - an At-Large Director on the USA Fencing Board of Directors - whose blog named 'The Fencing Coach' includes a passionate defense of the inclusion of trans athletes in women's sports. Incredibly, Lehfeldt shared a series of fake email exchanges to his Instagram account in 2023 (now deleted) that dismantled various anti-trans arguments. In screenshots seen by DailyMail.com, and published below, he re-posted an email from 'Dorothy', who said their 'girls' were leaving women's fencing as the sport doesn't 'respect real women' or recognize 'there will always be two distinct DNAs'. A second screenshot posted by Lehfeldt details the reply to the faked email exchange, reading: 'Dear Dorothy, the year is 2023 and as it turns out, you're not in Kansas anymore. My daughter will compete against women, period. If she loses to a woman of any variety, I'm not going to pull her from the sport and write a whiny email announcing my departure. 'That's a great lesson to teach your kids. At this rate, they'll overcome adversity with the same zeal as a livid Karen in a department store. You don't deserve the name "Dorothy". You're a cowardly Lion and the only wizard that's going to dig you out of the myopic hole you've put yourself and your family in is one of the "grand wizard" variety. You bore me with these emails. Be on your merry way down the yellow brick road.' USA Fencing's pro-trans chairman Damien Lehfeldt has also been invited before Congress In now-deleted posts on Instagram, Lehfeldt shared email conversations with a person named 'Dorothy' about USA Fencing's pro-trans stance, which he claims were fake In his alleged fake reply, he ripped into a concerned 'Dorothy' and called her a 'cowardly Lion' In a conversation with our reporter, Lehfeldt insisted the email exchanges were 'not real', despite them being posted as though they were legitimate conversations. Turner, seemingly unaware that the posts were fake, told DailyMail.com beforehand: 'Damien Lehfeldt had been getting emails from people stating that they were concerned and that they were really upset about the transgender policy. 'He would screenshot their emails and send them personal attacks, and then he would post the emails onto Instagram, almost doxing them.' Amid the controversy over her disqualification last month, it was revealed that Turner faced off against men seven times just a week earlier. The fencing star competed in the Swarthmore College Phoenix Cup in Swarthmore, Philadelphia, on March 23 and made the quarter finals. The mixed tournament pitted her against male fencers Ian Flynn, Harrison Kovacs, Luka Specter, Ethan Lee, Pau Chou-Esteban, and Luis Largaespada. She defeated Specter and Kovacs in the pool stage but lost to Flynn and Chou-Esteban, before defeating Lee and Chou-Esteban in the finals and being eliminated by Largaespada. Monica Aksamit, who won a bronze medal for the US at the 2016 Olympics, said it was odd that Turner made a spectacle of protesting against fighting Sullivan Monica Aksamit, who won a bronze medal for the US at the 2016 Olympics, said it was odd that Turner made a spectacle of protesting against fighting Sullivan. 'I think calling her brave is quite comical. I personally think that she looks more like a coward than anything else,' she told the DailyMail.com. 'We regularly train amongst men and boys, we regularly have tournaments against men and boys. 'She fenced against men a week prior, and beat four of them, so it wasn't an issue then. Now there's an issue when there's a trans-athlete?' Share or comment on this article: Female fencer who refused to fight trans rival invited to testify before Congress after viral disqualification Add comment