ESPN is accused of firing NFL Countdown host Sam Ponder over her criticism of trans women in sports.
‘So ESPN is firing @samponder, the only woman at the network who [has] “Openly saying that men don’t belong in women’s sports three weeks before football season?” wrote former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines on X, echoing the comments of many others.
“Pathetic… The woke media just got even more woke,” someone responded. “That’s why ESPN is failing.”
Ponder, 38, will be released two years into her three-year, $3 million contract but will receive her full salary, DailyMail.com has learned. In addition, the timing of the decision was determined by the approaching end of the fiscal year on September 30, a source told DailyMail.com.
Ponder recently posted a comment on X about the gender controversy surrounding female Olympic boxer Imane Khelif, who is accused of having XY chromosomes.
“XY = male XX = female,” Ponder wrote.
ESPN accused of firing Sam Ponder over her criticism of trans women in sports
Riley Gaines suggested Ponder was fired for her views on trans women in sports
Oddly enough, Ponder is being released by ESPN at the same time as NFL analyst Robert Griffin III, who took an opposing stance on this exact issue.
“Imane Khelif is a biological female and if you want to protect our daughters, you need to protect her,” Griffin wrote on X about Khelif, who won gold at the Paris Olympics. “If you won’t do the investigation to find out the truth, then we need to be protected from you.”
Griffin’s firing led to similar suspicions that ESPN fired him because of his opinions about Khelif.
“Did ESPN fire RG3 because of this piece on Imane Khelif?” journalist Chuck Modi asked on X. “Or something else?”
Ponder wasn’t the only ESPN personality to question the International Olympic Committee’s decision to allow Khelif to compete as a woman.
Veteran college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit was asked on X whether “men belong in women’s sports,” to which he replied, “Of course not. Ridiculous question.”
Herbstreit was not fired or publicly reprimanded by the network for the comment, which Ponder applauded online.
ESPN has not fired Herbstreit, whose comments about trans women in sports were applauded by Ponder during a social media exchange earlier this month
Like Ponder, Griffin (pictured) was fired by ESPN while making about $1 million annually
Griffin expressed an opposing view of Khelif van Ponder before he was fired by ESPN
Ponder is married to former Vikings QB Christian Ponder (pictured). The couple has three children
Ponder is a graduate of Liberty University and previously worked at Fox Sports before joining ESPN
Riley Gaines testifies before a House Oversight Subcommittee
Riley Gaines testifies at a House Oversight Subcommittee hearing on trans women
Ponder has not spoken publicly about her resignation.
ESPN declined to comment on Ponder or Griffin’s departures when contacted by DailyMail.com.
Ponder previously spoke out about the issue on social media in May 2023.
Responding to a social media post from Gaines, Ponder wrote, “I have barely said anything publicly about this issue and yet so many people have messaged me, stopped me on the street to thank me, and told stories of girls being afraid to speak out for fear of losing their jobs or being called hateful names.
An outspoken Christian and a graduate of Liberty University, Ponder is the wife of former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder. The couple have three children.
Gaines, a former University of Kentucky swimmer, has been a critic of trans women in sports since she took fifth place in the 200-meter freestyle final with trans woman Lia Thomas at the 2022 NCAA Championships.