Fallon Fox, a professional mixed
martial arts fighter, has come out transgender.
Fox, 37, is the first female
transgender fighter in mixed martial arts history, Sports
Illustrated reported.
“For years I've known at some point
it's very likely the shoe would drop,” Fox told Outsports.
“Maybe someone would guess that I'm trans. Maybe they would know
me from my life before I transitioned. I've been waiting for that
phone call to happen. And Saturday night, it happened.”
Fox is referring to questions about her
gender posed by a reporter to her and a former trainer.
“These past six years, people have
seen me as a woman, not a transsexual. People in the gym, people I
train with, it's been great, it's been awesome. I'm just a woman to
them. I don't want that to go away. It's unfortunate that it has
to.”
Fox said her parents reacted negatively
when she told them she was transgender 10 years ago. They sent her
to a therapist who attempted to convince Fox that she was a gay man,
with the aim of turning her into a straight man. Today, Fox has
little contact with her parents.
Fox underwent gender reassignment
surgery in 2006.
She won her second professional bout
over the weekend at Championship Fighting Alliance 10 in Coral
Gables, Florida.