Transgender athlete Veronica Ivy, who made history as the first trans woman to win a world track cycling championship, is now finding success in a second sport, capturing multiple titles on the amateur golf circuit in Canada.
Ivy, 44, and teammates Nonie Marler and Aram Choi defended their Inter-Provincial Team title at the Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship this week, helping Team British Columbia secure the Margaret Todd Trophy for the third consecutive year. The victory marks the second consecutive year that the trio has won the title at the championship, which took place at Burlington Golf & Country Club in Ontario on Thursday.
The recent success follows Ivy’s dominant performance in June when she captured both the women’s British Columbia Mid-Amateur and Mid-Master championships at Chilliwack Golf Club, winning by one stroke over Marler with a 54-hole total of 223.
“I swear, golf has to be the hardest sport out there,” Ivy wrote in an Instagram post after her provincial victory in June. “Cycling was so simple by comparison. Cycling is maybe 5 minutes of peak stress, but golf is just 5hrs of non-stop stress, for days on end.”
Ivy previously made headlines as a pioneer in women’s cycling. She became the first transgender woman to win a world track cycling championship when she claimed the UCI Women’s Masters Track World Championship in the 35-44 age bracket in 2018, followed by a second title in 2019. Her cycling victories sparked ongoing debate about transgender participation in women’s sports, with critics arguing that she maintained physical advantages despite hormone therapy.
Her transition to competitive golf came after she stepped away from international cycling in January 2025 to focus on the sport. According to reporting about her recent achievements, Ivy has called her driving her biggest weapon and has set a goal of eventually driving beyond 280 yards. Only three golfers on the LPGA Tour currently average more than 280 yards on drives, according to the tour’s website, and only nine average 275 yards.
Ivy’s recent victories in golf come at a time when transgender participation in women’s sports is once again front and center in the national conversation. The debate intensified after Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham stated that she opposed transgender athletes competing in women’s sports. Cunningham said she wanted “to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men.”
Her comments sparked a significant backlash and sparked rallies both in support of and against her position outside arenas during Fever games. Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve wore a shirt reading “Trans Kids Belong” during a game against the Fever, signaling her opposing stance.
The debate has extended to professional basketball as well. Former NBA players have now entered the discussion. Enes Kanter Freedom announced his intention to declare for the 2027 WNBA Draft, claiming to identify as transgender to test the league’s eligibility rules. Hours later, former NBA player Royce White made a similar announcement on social media, stating that he too plans to declare for the 2027 WNBA Draft, saying he identifies as “sometimes identifying as a woman for purposes of professional basketball.” White is also a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Minnesota.
Both former NBA players said their declarations were to challenge the WNBA’s current eligibility guidelines, which state that “only players who are women are eligible to play in the league,” but do not provide a specific definition of what constitutes a woman for eligibility purposes.
Ivy has long been a vocal advocate for transgender inclusion in sports and has written op-eds for major publications defending the participation of transgender athletes in women’s competitions. She has also been critical of sports governing bodies that have moved to restrict transgender participation, calling such policies discriminatory.
Ivy’s success in golf, following her historic achievements in cycling, underscores the broader conversation about fairness, inclusion, and the role of transgender athletes across multiple sports. Her victories have drawn attention from both supporters of transgender inclusion and those who argue that restrictions are necessary to protect fairness in women’s athletics.