With transgender inclusion in sports being the target of intense political attacks, I was grateful to speak with an athlete who has been a leading voice for inclusive sport. Grace McKenzie (she/her) is a transgender woman and lifelong athlete who found an inclusive and welcoming support network within the U.S, women's rugby community, which she describes as the most transformative experience of her transition journey. She was recruited to her first team in 2019, and played for 7 years across the United States for highly competitive clubs including the Berkeley All Blues and the New York Rugby Club.

When World Rugby announced its plans to ban trans women internationally from the sport in 2020, Grace took action by organizing a global movement in opposition. She started a petition that accumulated over 25,000 signatures, and has engaged hundreds of clubs and dozens of professional athletes around the world through Rugby for All an organization that she helped co-found, and as an Advisory Council member of the Sport & Rights Alliance  Since then, Grace has shared her story and advocacy at numerous forums around the world including the United Nations, prior to her retirement from the sport in early 2025.

YouTube: https://youtu.be/lgtcGR0bd6U

Transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1H_ky1ylon2lSY15Yn71MNgvCV-ln_gVErIEwmYsT1LM/edit?tab=t.0

You can follow Grace on Instagram @withgracetoo 

Rugby for All https://www.instagram.com/rugbyforall.co/

Sports & Rights Alliance https://www.instagram.com/sportandrightsalliance/

You can learn more about resources for transgender figure skaters and their allies at skatingpartner.com

You can reach me with comments or suggestions for topics and people I should talk to, by email at fsfuturepodcast@gmail.com or Instagram @futurefspodcast 

If you appreciate the podcast, you can also support my work with a one-time or ongoing donation on Ko-Fi, www.ko-fi.com/futureoffigureskating

Links:

Grace powerfully represented trans women in the debate at the Play the Game conference, which you can watch here: https://www.playthegame.org/conferences/play-the-game-2025/live-streaming/

New USFS “Category Policy” (October 2025)

https://usfigureskating.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a74f8ee4ba91875df45aa1592&id=cca7538f2a&e=412852edf6