Pro wrestling veteran Lance Storm has called for an end to intergender matches.
Storm noted on Twitter that intergender wrestling matches need to stop due to the recent “#SpeakingOut” movement on social media, which saw male and female workers in the business speak out about alleged abuse they have endured.
“I see some discussion on inter gender wrestling matches again. In light of #SpeakingOut I think these matches have to stop. I’ve heard from so many women who were uncomfortable doing these but felt obligated to to get booked because these matches were accepted ‘norms’,” Storm wrote this morning.
He made a follow-up tweet about how a wrestler may face heat from canceling an intergender match.
“For every inter gender match that happens in a top company with professional conduct there are dozens of women who agree to be booked in a Women’s on a multi show loop that gets there and finds out the other woman didn’t show up (maybe was never booked) and now she has to Agree to do intergender matches and be the only women on the tour or lose all the booking and risk heat from canceling. There is then pressure to share a room because everyone else is doubling up. THIS HAPPENS,” he wrote.
Storm continued the discussion with several fans on Twitter. ROH women’s division star Session Moth Martina also weighed in.
“I think we should be allowed the choice to have an intergender match if we want to. Hopefully in a safe environment where no woman or man will feel uncomfortable in that situation again,” she wrote.
Storm responded, “Explain to me how to make that happen at the Indy level, and I’m with you.”
You can see their full tweets below, along with several more related comments from Storm to fans:
I see some discussion on inter gender wrestling matches again. In light of #SpeakingOut I think these matches have to stop. I’ve heard from so many women who were uncomfortable doing these but felt obligated to to get booked because these matches were accepted “norms”.
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
Agree to do intergender matches and be the only women on the tour or lose all the booking and risk heat from canceling. There is then pressure to share a room because everyone else is doubling up. THIS HAPPENS
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
And often if the woman complains, she is labelled “difficult”
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
Explain to me how to make that happen at the Indy level, and I’m with you. https://t.co/Xg8J5uZaEG
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
Yup obviously have no understand of the wrestling business. When you are starting out you are afraid to say no, because if you do and someone else says yes, you don’t get booked. This is where the power which facilitates harassment comes from. https://t.co/AdHVNcyUxe
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
You don’t understand wrestling. When you are new the pressure to do as you are asked is huge. If you say no you don’t get booked. That’s my point I’ve had Many female students who didn’t want to do them feel pressured to do them. https://t.co/TCQ2Rgpgbl
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
Creating situation where women can be pressured into do things they aren’t comfortable with is how harassment STARTS. https://t.co/wi5MAm6Lw7
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
Are the Olympics then sexist. Please that’s stupid. https://t.co/vyANlcBK2h
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
NO! Because there are Always repercussions in wrestling when you say No and rewards when you say Yes. https://t.co/RR2ASkKu5W
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
Well explain that to the women who came to me who said they were very uncomfortable having to wrestle man, especially ones they didn’t know, but felt pressured to in order to get booked. https://t.co/2lZ5olNYKq
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
Again you are completely missing the point. Those who support it got booked so they are out spoken. Those opposed won’t speak out because they fear Not getting booked. https://t.co/EAoDYHsmwb
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
It if women who do them get more opportunities than women who don’t. The pressure is there to force those who don’t want to to do it. Especially when the women are green and are terrified to say no to what is asked of them by the Booker/promoter https://t.co/dyuiapbqWU
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
Speaking out illustrated that men in wrestling to often don’t conduct themsleves professionally. I’m suggesting removing one of the element which puts pressure on women to do things they are uncomfortable with. One that was a frequent tool of the guy most accused in Speaking out https://t.co/PT5W7UfOQj
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
For every top person who does these matches on TV in a professional setting there are 100s who have to do them on small very unprofessional Indy shows. https://t.co/eWiQo7meoF
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
I’m Telling Men not to do them too. Is removing men from a situation where they abuse women victim blaming? https://t.co/gjUSIsp22y
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
I have no idea if she was comfortable, that’s the point. We were both told what to do and did what we were told. https://t.co/C1vr8eBhDb
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
How is removing intergender wrestling taking something away from women? Both men and women do it so not doing it effects men and women equally. https://t.co/rB0J39ExNr
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
Why do wrestlers need intergender matches to have quality matches? I see great women’s matches all the time I see great men’s matches all the time. https://t.co/alGS1Jiv6u
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
I sat with countless female students/wrestlers and had long conversations with them about their struggles on the Indy scene and being pressured into these matches came up a lot. Claiming Indont pay attention is such an ignorant statement. https://t.co/9f6uPpuse5
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
So you’re saying if a woman is uncomfortable with these matches she should just speak out, even if she feels doing so might hurt her career, has nothing to do with the Speaking Out movement. 🤔 https://t.co/JvVLDYTX1I
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
Okay but explain to me how this happens at the Indy level? WWE or AEW can have a human resource department but at the Indy level there is often 1 guy in charge, the guy asking you to do something and he’s the guy you’d have to complain to if what he’s asking you is unreasonable. https://t.co/WGvspviBB0
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
Sasha and BayLey made history in Brooklyn without men. Charlotte, Becky and Ronda made history at WrestleMania with out men. No one needs intergender to make history, and women sure don’t need men to make history. https://t.co/Kp1C4wE1lK
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
Agree to do intergender matches and be the only women on the tour or lose all the booking and risk heat from canceling. There is then pressure to share a room because everyone else is doubling up. THIS HAPPENS
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
No it’s wrong to pressure a female teenaged wrestling student with very little experiment to wrestle a dude she’s never met before. Which happens way too often on small Indy shows. https://t.co/3GfWlB2k2T
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
I’m spitting the fact that female students/wrestlers have come to me with fears and concerns of the predatory nature of inter gender matches at the Indy level. That is not opinion that is fact, I am voicing and supporting them. https://t.co/Casf8WKzTW
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
How is being against Intergender matches telling women what to do? I’m saying the same thing to men and women. Why is not being for intergender anti women? The matches involve both Men and Women. https://t.co/GxFZ2u5YUU
— Lance Storm (@LanceStorm) August 6, 2020
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