ESPN panelist says 'trans kids deserve to play sports' in final appearance before show's cancellation

"Around the Horn" leaves the airwaves aboriginal this month, which means immoderate of the show's panelists are making their last appearances successful the coming weeks.

That includes Kate Fagan, who appeared for the past clip connected the amusement Thursday. Fagan, a longtime writer and reporter, besides played assemblage hoops astatine Colorado.

Fagan has made appearances connected the amusement since she was archetypal hired by ESPN successful 2012. She near the web successful 2018 but has continued to look connected the program.

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President Donald Trump signs the "No Men successful Women's Sports" enforcement bid into instrumentality successful the East Room of the White House successful Washington, D.C., Feb. 5, 2025. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP)

Fagan was determined to beryllium the "winner" of Thursday's amusement against Jemele Hill, who made a instrumentality to the amusement since leaving the web successful 2018. The victor of the occurrence typically delivers a abbreviated monologue, and Fagan said "being connected this amusement has been a privilege and a platform."

With Thursday marking her last episode, she utilized that level to marque a plea for transgender athletes.

"I cognize it's my past clip connected it, and I privation to accidental thing worthy of that platform, and that's trans kids merit to play sports," she said. "Think astir what you retrieve from your clip playing sports. Ninety-nine percent of it is uncovering that jersey for the archetypal time, your favourite number, community, joy, those high-fives. 

"It's that infinitesimal erstwhile you person a large play with a teammate. It's the feeling of belonging. And it does not cognize gender. Trans kids merit the aforesaid arsenic everyone other does.

"Sports is joy. Sports is humanity. And the much radical who person that, the better."

Transgender jock protagonist Kyle Harp, left, holds the advancement pridefulness emblem arsenic "Save Girls Sports" supporters Lori Lopez and her dad, Pete Pickering, perceive to statement extracurricular a Riverside Unified School District gathering Dec. 19, 2024.  (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

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There is nary instrumentality oregon bid that bans transgender children from participating successful sports. President Donald Trump signed an enforcement bid successful February that prohibits biologic males identifying arsenic girls oregon women from competing against biologic females.

ESPN announced the show's cancellation successful March, and soon after, erstwhile panelist Jay Mariotti, who was a regular connected the amusement until a home unit apprehension successful 2010, said successful an interrogation the amusement is being canceled due to the fact that it went "woke."

"I deliberation what John Skipper wanted from immoderate of the shows was helium started to instal radical connected the shows who became anti-Trump," Mariotti told Front Office Sports.

In a caller station connected his ain Substack, "Around the Horn ended a agelong clip agone ¸— erstwhile I near the show," Mariotti reiterated that immoderate of the panelists went "woke" portion others were "on dope."

Sadie Schreiner puts a transgender emblem successful her hairsbreadth earlier heading to the awards basal aft finishing 3rd successful the finals of the 200-meter contention astatine the 2024 NCAA Division III outdoor way and tract championships astatine Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium oMay 25, 2024, successful Myrtle Beach, S.C. (Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

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There are present conscionable 11 episodes near of the show, which is implicit 20 years old.

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