Former Canadian Football League superstar Maven Maurer was just honored earlier this year for her accomplishments. Now, fans of the British Columbia Lions are celebrating Maurer not just for for her role in the 2000 Grey Cup championship team, but her recent coming out as a trans woman.
Maurer is the first former professional football player to come out as trans, playing for over a decade with the CFL before clarifying her trans identity. She was a fullback and special teams player in the CFL. Teams she played for, including the Saskatchewan Roughriders, B.C. Lions, Ottawa Renegades, and Edmonton Elks.
She has two championship wins under her belt—the aforementioned win with the Lions, and one with the Elks in 2005. She played in over 152 games, achieving 758 all-purpose yards, four touchdowns, and 168 special teams tackles.
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Maurer realized she was trans after a painful experience that resulted in her seeking out therapy. She told 3 Down Nation, “I never wanted to look within and part of me didn’t know if I could handle it. There was a lot of shame, a lot of guilt. Everyone has that room in their house that you just throw stuff in that you’re going to deal with later or you don’t know what to do with it. It might be just a closet or whatever, but that room is in your mind as well. Once I opened up that door, a bunch of past experiences and a bunch of memories that were suppressed all came flooding back.”
Her transition has been incredibly impactful for her. “I’ve never used the word content before. I’ve never felt that, but I’m definitely the closest I’ve ever been,” she continued. “It’s been remarkable the difference it’s made in my day-to-day and with my mental health. I used to be so angry and I would run on that, and now that I’m running on love, I feel like I’m amplified 100 times. I’m seeing that acceptance not only from my teammates but from my co-workers at CN, seeing it from my friends, seeing it in the community.”
Maurer explained to fans that she’s “got a lot of catching up to do.” Her new goal is to reach more people and use her voice to raise awareness about trans rights.
“One of the things I talked about with my therapist is when you shine your light and other people see it, it secretly gives them permission to shine theirs. Sometimes you don’t know that things are a possibility until you see someone else doing it.”
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