Aryna Sabalenka is on could 9 after achieving a feat last accomplished by Serena Williams. After defeating Emma Navarro, she became the first woman since the American legend to make it to back-to-back US Open finals. However, the task isn’t done yet as the Belarusian star is eyeing the title in New York. While everything might have been going smoothly for Sabalenka on the court, there has been a major controversy surrounding her fitness coach, Jason Stacy.

Sabalenka and Stacy joined forces back in July 2018. And the two have had a successful partnership together. Stacy has a decorated CV and has been in this field for more than 25 years. “I’ve helped athletes get to world No.1 or become world champion in four sports now. Two different martial arts – jiu-jitsu, judo, then swimming and tennis,” he proudly mentions.

However, Stacy raised several eyebrows after he was spotted wearing an ‘XX-XY’ hat at the US Open. The XX-XY Athletics brand was launched by former Levi’s president Jennifer Sey a few months back, to protect women’s spaces in sports. “Our mission is to stand up for female athletes and the protection of women’s sports while delivering world-class product so that women (and men) no longer have to compromise,” says Jennifer on why she launched the brand.

The US Open is not the first tournament where Stacy has worn that XX-XY hat. He was spotted wearing the same hat during Sabalenka’s straight-set win over Iga Swiatek at the Cincinnati Open. Further, he has been a massive supporter of women’s sports. Earlier at the US Open, he channeled Alexis Ohanian’s influence and wore a t-shirt with the latter’s famous caption, “Everyone watches women’s sports.”

Talking about women’s spaces in sports, the year 2024 has been a controversial one in that regard. At the Paris Olympics, the Algerian boxer Imane Khelif was in the news over a gender row. Last year, Khelif was barred from participating in the World Championships by IBA, as she couldn’t pass the gender eligibility test. It was said by IBA that her samples returned an XY chromosomal pairing. However, that had no impact on Khelif’s Olympic participation.

Imane Khelif wins Olympic gold despite going through a tough phase

Khelif not only took part in the Olympics, but she also went on to win the gold medal. However, during her victorious run, she faced enormous unwarranted criticism because of the IBA ban last year, with many fans of the opinion that she shouldn’t be taking part in the Olympics. Even though she fulfilled all the eligibility criteria required for Olympic participation.

Eventually, IOC released a statement defending Khelif. The statement read, “We have seen in reports misleading information about two female athletes competing at the Olympic Games Paris 2024. The two athletes have been competing in international boxing competitions for many years in the women’s category, including the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, International Boxing Association (IBA) World Championships, and IBA-sanctioned tournaments. “

The statement further added, “These two athletes were the victims of a sudden and arbitrary decision by the IBA. Towards the end of the IBA World Championships in 2023, they were suddenly disqualified without any due process.” Apart from Khelif, the other female boxer who was facing criticism at the Olympics was Lin Yu-ting.

Imane Khelif showed tremendous determination to remain unfazed despite all the criticism, as she went on to win the gold medal for her country. However, her story sparked a controversy that left a sour taste for the quadrennial event.