Air Force Academy staffers forced a fan to cover his shirt that read "Keep Women's Sports Female" at a women's volleyball game over the weekend that featured a transgender player.
John Kopecky, an Air Force Academy graduate, attended Saturday's game at the Academy. The match was against Mountain West Conference opponent San Jose State University.
The pair firmly told Kopecky that if he wanted to stay he would have to zip his hoodie 'all the way up' so his shirt isn't visible.
SJSU has had a controversial season due to having a male athlete, Blaire Fleming, on the roster. Several NCAA players, including Fleming's own teammate, have spoken out against a male playing against females.
Despite five women's volleyball teams announcing forfeits against SJSU, presumably over the unfairness of having to play against a male, the Air Force Academy decided to play SJSU as scheduled.
According to reporter Dan Zaksheske, Kopecky was wearing a hooded sweatshirt with a shirt underneath that read, "Keep Women's Sports Female."
A video then caught a pointed conversation between Kopecky and two Air Force Academy representatives — a male and a female — who told him his shirt is "political" and that they are "trying to keep it comfortable and safe" at the arena.
"How is it political?" Kopecky asks.
"How is it not?" the male replied.
Kopecky told the pair that he had worn the shirt in question just days prior to an Air Force Academy event, and no one took issue with it. He then asked if it would be OK to wear the shirt to other Academy events.
"Can I wear this to the football game today?"
"Yeah," the female replied. "Sir, we know why you're wearing that ... targeted ..."
"I'm not targeting anything," Kopecky reiterated. "I'm coming here to a women's sports event."
The pair firmly told Kopecky that if he wanted to stay he would have to zip his hoodie "all the way up" so his shirt isn't visible.
They then warned him that he may be forced to leave the arena if he unzips the hoodie, at which point Kopecky said if he was removed from the facility, he would halt all his donations and season ticket purchases.
In an interview with OutKick, Kopecky said the Air Force Academy made specific rule changes for this game in particular, including a banner telling fans that no signs are allowed into the venue.
"They brought out a big board with all these rules about fan conduct that may have been there in the past, but I've never seen it [displayed] right at the door," Kopecky told the outlet.
According to OutKick, the school said in a statement that it "takes necessary measures to provide a safe environment at all home athletic events for players, coaches, staff and fans."
In the end, San Jose State defeated the Air Force Academy 3-1, and OutKick said Fleming led SJSU with 10 kills in the match.
Kopecky also echoed a sentiment that many female volleyball players have revealed after playing against Fleming: "Watching Blaire Fleming play ... the jumping ability was just drastically different. It was just like, 'Wow, there's something you don't see every day at a women's volleyball match.' ... [Fleming was] strikingly more athletic than normal."
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