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Noa-Lynn van Leuven has hit back at her critics who feel some transgender athletes make the transition to be ‘better in the sport’.
The Dutch darts star will become the first transgender player to appear at the PDC World Championship on Tuesday.
She will face off against compatriot Kevin Doets, who will be the strong favourite to progress.
Van Leuven was given a place in this year’s championships after finishing in the top two spots in the 2024 PDC Women’s Series along with Fallon Sherrock.
The 28-year-old has had to contend with toxic atmospheres for some of her matches as she’s progressed in her professional career.
Noa-Lynn van Leuven was booed at the Grand Slam of Darts
PDC
She was booed at the Grand Slam of Darts in November and some players on the women’s circuit are unhappy that a trans player is competing against them.
But Van Leuven has come out fighting by hitting back at those who suggest there was an ulterior motive to her transition.
“I think it’s tough for transgender people to play sports, especially when people know that you’re trans because you have a big advantage until you prove it’s not,” Van Leuven told Sky Sports.
“I don’t know anyone who would transition to just be better in the sport.
“With everything I do, there’s always people that want to make an article about it. And some are positive, and that’s really nice.
“But some of them have been a bit ****. And that’s annoying. Because a lot of newspapers, they don’t reach out to me to talk to me.
“They’re like ‘Noa-Lynn transitioned in 2022’. I did not. I transitioned about nine, 10 years ago.
“They make it look like, okay, Noa-Lynn transitioned in 2021, a year before she started appearing on the women’s tournament. That’s not true.
“They’re almost making it look like, OK, she wasn’t good enough with the men, and now she’s just going to do this.”
The Alexandra Palace crowd at the World Championships are often boisterous and loud and they’re not afraid to fully back one player and go against another.
Noa-Lynn van Leuven will become the first trans player to play at the Alexandra Palace
PDC
Cameron Menzies experienced the latter in his match against Leonard Gates on Monday night with the Scottish star jeered by the crowd at times.
Van Leuven is unsure what to expect from the crowd when she steps out into the arena on Tuesday afternoon, but has her eyes on a potential upset.
“It makes me a bit nervous, but like I said, I just want to play darts,” she said.
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Darts have allowed trans athletes such as Noa-Lynn van Leuven to compete against biological womenINSTAGRAM“I want to go out on the stage, bring my A-game, and hopefully beat the best players there are.
“I want to be the best, I want to beat the best, and I want to become a really good darts player.
“And with playing women, you’re not going to get that far.”
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