Subhojeet Mukherjee on April 18, 2024
Nyla Rose, a prominent member of the AEW women’s division, has been a trailblazer as a transgender wrestler in the world of professional wrestling. However, her journey has not been without its share of unwarranted hate and disrespect from some individuals. In fact, Tony Khan has now expressed disappointment over The Oklahoma Athletic Commission’s warning to AEW over transgender wrestling.
The Oklahoma Athletic Commission has become a subject of controversy in the wrestling world due to its warning to AEW regarding a transgender wrestler competing in the state. The wrestler in question is Nyla Rose, who participated in a match taped for Ring of Honor in December 2023.
On the media call for AEW Dynasty, AEW President Tony Khan addressed the situation, expressing disappointment at the commission’s response to Rose’s match. Khan emphasized that he was surprised and dismayed by the commission’s warning, noting that AEW had not engaged in any wrongdoing by featuring Nyla Rose in their show.
Khan voiced strong support for Nyla Rose and transgender individuals in sports, asserting that there should be no discrimination against them. He highlighted Nyla Rose’s contributions to AEW as a talented wrestler and a trailblazer as the first transgender world champion. Khan praised her work within the AEW Together program and her active presence in the community, emphasizing her strong character and supportive nature.
“I would like to talk about that story with the Oklahoma State Athletic Commission and the warning they issued against AEW when we featured Nyla Rose on the show last December. I was really surprised by this. It’s not something I was expecting, and, of course, I was disappointed by the commission’s position and by that warning. I don’t think we did anything wrong. I’m really shocked by it. I don’t think there should be discrimination against transgender wrestlers or transgender people at all. They have rights. To that end, I absolutely stand by Nyla Rose. AEW stands by Nyla Rose and all transgender people who want to play sports. This is wrestling. There was nothing wrong with it. Nyla Rose is a great wrestler and has been a great world champion.”
Khan called on the Oklahoma Commission to recognize Nyla Rose as a great athlete and person and to treat her with the respect she deserves. He expressed hope that the commission could adopt a more inclusive and accepting stance, pointing to the diverse AEW locker room as an example of how people from all backgrounds and beliefs can embrace Nyla Rose.
”I love Nyla and working with Nyla. She has been a great part of our history. She was the first transgender world champion ever and is a great part of the AEW Together program. She does a ton for the community. She is a great person with a great heart. She is very supportive of the other wrestlers, one of the funniest people on social media. I personally have nominated Nyla to TBS for the best social media presence on more than one occasion over the years. She is an AEW original has been part of the team since 2019, going back to the first shows. Looking at everything Nyla has accomplished, to put that label on her, it’s not right. She is much more than that. She is a great athlete. I hope everybody can look at Nyla and see she is a great wrestler, a great person, and deserves the same chances as everybody else. If the AEW locker room, which consists of people from all over the world and all different backgrounds and beliefs, if everybody in the locker room can embrace Nyla, I would hope the Oklahoma commission can do the same thing.”
Tony Khan was asked how he plans to handle the situation regarding the Oklahoma Athletic Commission’s warning against AEW for featuring Nyla Rose in a match. He was also asked if he intends to avoid running events in Oklahoma in response to the issue.
Khan emphasized that AEW has a solid plan for its shows in 2024 and 2025, along with a strong new team that takes all these factors into account. He considered the situation to be an evolving story, expressing surprise at the commission’s stance. Nonetheless, he reiterated AEW’s commitment to supporting fans across the United States and worldwide by bringing AEW wrestling to all locations where there is a strong fanbase.
“All I can say is we have a great plan for our shows in 2024 and 2025. We have a great new team and take all of this into consideration. I treat it as a developing story. I’m kind of surprised by this but we definitely want to do our best to support the fans across America and all over the world and bring AEW wrestling everywhere we have great fans. We have great fans in Oklahoma, they are important to us. We’ll do anything we can to support those fans. It’s something we’re going to have to think about.”
Nevertheless, this entire situation surrounding Nyla Rose was an unfortunate one and it is likely fans will approve of how Tony Khan has been handling the situation so far.
What do you think of how Tony Khan handled the situation with Nyla Rose? Sound off in the comments section below!
April 18, 2024 2:07 pm
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