UKIP treasurer's poker 'sexism' row

UKIP treasurer's poker 'sexism' row

Friday, 16 August 2013

A UK politician has landed himself in hot water after comments he made regarding women and their competitive capabilities. According to an article in the Telegraph, Ukip Treasurer Stuart Wheeler recently stated when it comes to pursuits such as “chess, bridge and poker - women come absolutely nowhere”.

Speaking in relation to a debate on female quotas on the boards of top companies, Wheeler said that “business is very, very competitive and you should take the performance of women in another competitive area, which is sport where [men] have no strength advantage.”

Almost immediately the comments drew criticism from many members of the public, including the poker community who hail the likes of Vanessa Selbst, Liv Boeree and Vicky Coren (to name a few) as leaders of the game.

Wheeler is the millionaire founder of spread betting giant IG Index and is said to be a regular poker and bridge player. He managed to notch up a 33rd place finish in the WSOP Main Event the year that Chris Moneymaker won.

However, his $35,000 earnings certainly pale in comparison to the $7,398,453 someone like Selbst has racked up.



Tags: Stuart Wheeler, UKIP, women in poker