Impact Wrestling Issues Statement On Gisele Shaw & Rick Steiner Incident

Impact Wrestling tweeted their statement on the Rick Steiner – Giselle Shaw incident at WrestleCon in Los Angeles. As previously reported, Shaw is alleging that Rick Steiner yelled at her with derogatory language regarding her being transgender on Friday. Shaw took to her Twitter account to note that she was at WrestleCon for an autograph signing and while she was talking to her table, someone was yelling at her saying that she was a man, “a piece of trash,” “filth,” and more.

Shaw said she kept her head down and went to her table so as not to acknowledge the comments and that later she decided to go see who was saying it, realizing that it was Steiner and that he continued saying it.

Shaw noted that she was commenting on it not for sympathy but because she felt she had to stand up for herself and others who go through that sort of thing, particularly since Friday was International Transgender Day of Visibility.

Shaw also noted that while many other wrestling legends there didn’t get inolved, her peers at Impact stood up for her and that Steiner had used a gay slur against one of them earlier in the day.

WrestleCon also issued a statement on the incident and reportedly banned Rick Steiner from the remaining WrestleCon events: “WrestleCon regrets the events that took place at yesterday’s convention and apologizes to Gisele Shaw. We aim to promote a safe and inclusive environment for all LGBTQAI+ members of the wrestling community. The issue has been addressed and we hope the remainder of the convention can be a positive experience for all.”

Impact’s statement is below.

“IMPACT Wrestling stands in full support of @GiseleShaw08 and the LGBTQ+ community. We are saddened by the incident Friday afternoon at Wrestlecon in Los Angeles and hope everyone can learn and be better from it.

Thank you to the millions worldwide who have read Gisele’s statement and showed full support for her. Particular thanks go to the organizing staff of Wrestlecon as well as the IMPACT roster and crew who all handled an ugly situation with the utmost professionalism.”

Thank you to the millions worldwide who have read Gisele's statement and showed full support for her. Particular thanks go to the organizing staff of Wrestlecon as well as the IMPACT roster and crew who all handled an ugly situation with the utmost professionalism.

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 1, 2023