Sports Writer Comes Out as Transsexual

L.A. Times sports writer Mike Penner comes out as transsexual in his column Thursday, saying that he after 40 years of tears and heartache finally has found the courage to step forward as the person he really is. He also tells his readers that he after a short vacation will return as Christine Daniels.

Penner writes, "During my 23 years with The Times' sports department, I have held a wide variety of roles and titles. Tennis writer. Angels beat reporter. Olympics writer. Essayist. Sports media critic. NFL columnist. Recent keeper of the Morning Briefing flame. Today I leave for a few weeks' vacation, and when I return, I will come back in yet another incarnation. As Christine. I am a transsexual sportswriter. It has taken more than 40 years, a million tears and hundreds of hours of soul-wrenching therapy for me to work up the courage to type those words. I realize many readers and colleagues and friends will be shocked to read them."

Transsexualism is a complicated and widely misunderstood medical condition, Penner writes. Extensive therapy and testing have confirmed that he was born female and that his brain was "wired" female from birth.

Penner has been fighting against his true nature for more than 40 years but he finally began the coming-out process a few months ago, "To my everlasting amazement, friends and colleagues almost universally have been supportive and encouraging, often breaking the tension with good-natured doses of humor."

"When I told my boss Randy Harvey, he leaned back in his chair, looked through his office window to scan the newsroom and mused, 'Well, no one can ever say we don't have diversity on this staff.'"

"People have asked if transitioning will affect my writing. And if so, how? All I can say at this point is that I am now happier, more focused and more energized when I sit behind a keyboard. The wicked writer's block that used to reach up and torture me at some of the worst possible times imaginable has disappeared," Penner writes.

"So now we all will take a short break between bylines. "Mike Penner" is out, "Christine Daniels" soon will be taking its place."

We all congratulate you and wish you the best of luck, Mike!