World No. 1 Luke Humphries has thrown his support behind transgender darts player Noa-Lynn van Leuven, who is set to make history at the Grand Slam of Darts this weekend. Van Leuven will become the first transgender player to compete in a televised PDC tournament against men when she takes on three-time world champion Michael van Gerwen on Saturday.
Humphries, who begins his own Grand Slam campaign against Rowby-John Rodriguez, has acknowledged the controversy surrounding Van Leuven’s participation but stresses that she has followed all the rules. “I don’t get too involved in the politics to be honest,” he said. “It’s not up to me to say whether it is right or wrong. Whatever opinion I have, it wouldn’t matter. I just look at her as a dart player. She is in the competition. She has not broken any rules. She is doing what she is allowed to do.”
He also expressed sympathy for the online abuse Van Leuven has faced from some quarters, saying, “I wish her all the best. Hopefully, she gets a win and it’s good for her. Of course, I have sympathy for her because she is a human and no one likes being abused online. But she gets it a lot. Unfortunately, I think that the world can be a negative place, and people just want to abuse people and bring them down.”
Despite the negativity, Van Leuven has earned her place in the Grand Slam of Darts, finishing second in the PDC Women’s Order of Merit after a successful season. She also qualified for the World Championship in December based on her performance in the PDC’s Women’s Series.
PDC chief executive Matt Porter has defended the organization’s policy on transgender darts players, stating that it was developed with legal advice and input from other sports bodies like the IOC. “We took legal advice and we took some ideas from policy that other sports bodies, the IOC and other governing bodies have put in place,” Porter said. “Ultimately, we came up with a policy that we believe to be fair. We respect the fact that not everybody agrees with that and we accept that it’s not a unanimously accepted position. Noa-Lynn’s started to achieve more success in recent years, hence the opposition to her has become more vocal, which is the way of the world. Again, it’s something we respect but ultimately we have a policy in place and it’s one that we’re comfortable with.”
The Grand Slam of Darts, taking place from November 9-17, will see Humphries defending his title alongside both Greaves and Van Leuven. The tournament can be watched live on Sky Sports, leading into the 2025 PDC World Darts Championship, which begins on December 15.
