When Lynne Pinches approached the pool table on Saturday night, wearing a shirt with the jokey ‘Barry’s sister’ printed on the back, there was nothing to suggest what would follow.
The shockwave she sent
But as she shook hands with opponent Harriet Haynes – a trans woman – then refused to play, putting her handbag on her shoulder and walking off, she sent a shockwave through the sport.
No one watching could have known Lynne had been up all night, two days in a row, crying herself to sleep after tournament organisers U-turned on transgender being allowed to play in the women’s category.
‘I was crying until 3am’
And as her family had rallied round her ahead of the English Pool Association event, it was something her son Tommy – another player – had said which prompted her to act.
Lynne, 50, disclosed: ‘The devastation I have felt, I can’t even explain. I didn’t eat or sleep properly for two days. I was crying until 3am. I was devastated. My son Tommy, who plays on the Ultimate Pool Challenger Series, messaged me and said, “I know you must be absolutely devastated mum, because I know that you’ve you’ve hated this since the beginning”.
‘He really wanted to write it on his Facebook but he was worried he’d get banned. And that’s what pushed me over the edge to be honest. I thought “you’ve silenced me for years. You’re not silencing my child as well”. I’m not putting up with that.
‘I don’t care about the money or the title or the trophy. I care about fairness. If they hadn’t done that U-turn, we wouldn’t be here now. We were all so elated when they originally said they were going to have a strict category for biological females,’ she told the Telegraph.
About Lynne
Lynne is the matriarch of a big pool playing family, her sons Alex and Tommy Lewis are elite players.
And her jokey red t-shirt is a reference to brother Barry, a professional player and former top 32 and ranking-event quarter-finalist.
