On Wednesday, XX-XY Athletics announced that Sia Liilii is its first 2025 Courage Wins Champion. Liilii is a graduating senior from the University of Nevada, Reno and the former captain of the women's volleyball team. In 2024, Liilii led her team to boycott a game with San Jose State University, which has a biological male who identifies as female on their women's volleyball team. 

Nevada tried to force the women players to compete, citing gender discrimination if they forfeited. Liilii was pivotal in helping her teammates take a stand, and stay strong under the pressure from the university to play the game. 

From the XX-XY Athletics press release:

Without consulting the Nevada, Reno team, the university administration announced the team would play San Jose State University (SJSU) women’s volleyball team, which included a male athlete, in their women’s volleyball match in October 2024. Liilii and her team spoke up against being forced to play a male trans identified athlete on the SJSU team, whom they recognized had a combination of power, explosiveness, and leaping ability that no other player in the conference had.  

University officials tried to intimidate her into silence and admonished her that she wasn’t “educated” enough on the subject, saying a male taking estrogen has less athletic abilities than females do. Liilii and her team stood up to the university and forfeited a match against SJSU. And a crowd of 450 people and Tulsi Gabbard showed up to cheer them on.  

Because the Nevada team did not have a full cohort of players, Nevada had no choice but to forfeit the game. 

Great to be with several of Nevada’s champions for female athletes in the Senate Chambers during our legislative session pic.twitter.com/QABF2nqn11

— Stavros Anthony (@StavrosAnthony) March 19, 2025

As the XX-XY Athletics press release further outlined,

Her actions meet the highest standard of courage, integrity, and leadership in the fight for fairness, equal opportunity, and safety in women’s sports at the collegiate level.  

Liilii is first and only (so far) 2025 Courage Wins Award winner for her willingness to challenge institutional decisions, advocate for her team, and prioritize the integrity of women’s sports for future generations. 

I am so grateful to have received the Courage Wins award 🥹💝 I give all the glory to God for giving me the strength to stand up for what is right!!! #XX≠XY #BOYcott https://t.co/TNnyAssHmv

— Sia Liilii (@SiaLiilii) March 19, 2025

In a video interview with founder and CEO of XX-XY Athletics Jennifer Sey, she was effusive in her praise of Liilii, and how she exemplifies "what sports can offer a young person."

Sey continued,

It’s not about going to the Olympics. It's not about being able to do a flip on the beam, it's about developing character and courage and resilience, and learning that you can do really hard things, and if you fall down you can get up and keep trying. And that you're not going to be great at something right away, but you have to work hard at it. That's the value of sports.

XX-XY Athletics was created with the goal of protecting women's and girls' sports and women's and girls' spaces. Sey also developed the XX-XY Athletics Courage Wins Award to take the monetary cancellation that often results from taking a stand against the transgender agenda out of the equation, and to elevate the voices of brave female athletes like Sia Liilii. Sey further wants to force colleges, universities, and governing bodies like the NCAA to hear the voices of these women and work to protect their accomplishments, rather than float along on the current of the culture. 

Sey said, 

the Nikes of the world only celebrate the world champions and guess what? The D-1 competitive athletes like Sia work just as hard, they give up just as much, you know? I think Sia, because she stood up as the captain of the women's volleyball team at University of Nevada and said, we're not going to compete against a team that's fielding a male player, that’s not fair, that’s not right, this is bigger than me; I think she exhibits the kind of courage we want to develop in young people. 

Along with Sey, the XX-XY Athletics Courage Wins Advisory Council includes former University of Kentucky swimmer and women's sports activist Riley Gaines, podcaster and former sports correspondent Sage Steele, podcaster, reporter, and former sports broadcaster Michele Tafoya, and Independent Women's President Carrie Lukas. All women of courage who recognize and promote the courageousness in others. But the clothing company is not just about reinforcing the message that women's sports matter or that preserving women's spaces is important. As a former brand executive for Levi Strauss, Sey is also focused on providing a quality product that people can feel good about wearing and that they will return to purchase again and again.

I want us to be a successful brand. I'm not in this as a gimmick; I want to make amazing products. Products that people love and come back to, and that they feel they have an alternative to the kind of woke brands who pretend to champion women but really do no such thing. 

Success is not just about the message, but the branding and financial power to do advocacy that furthers the message and funds scholarships and sponsorship dollars for female athletes. 

If this brand doesn't grow and isn't profitable, I don't get to do the advocacy either, Sey said. So, we have to prioritize business results. That said, I believe brands can influence the culture and I would love to get to a place, not where we have a [television] network, but that we have our own awards ceremony. We're actually contemplating this now.

Using the ESPN ESPY Awards, and the Arthur Ashe Courage Award as a model, Sey hopes to replace that symbol with one that represents true courage.

I would love to replace the ESPYs, or at least compete with the ESPYs, and reward brave female athletes who are courageous and stand up in defense of their sports. Not just on this issue of males entering women's sports and spaces, but the issue of abuse In women's sports is still very significant as well. So, we certainly want to expand all the ways that we support brave courageous women athletes.

XX-XY Athletics produces powerful media to platform the voices of female athletes, reinforce their brand, and amplify their message.

Meet the 2025 Courage Wins Champion Sia Liilii. 

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