IFPA Women's Advisory Board Resigns; Issues Statement
Last night, November 19th, in response to the ongoing controversy around the OBX Fall Flippers Tournament and the response to it by the IFPA, the remaining members of the Women's Advisory Board, Crystal Cory, Karyn Kiser, Kim Martinez, and Zoë Vrabel, officially resigned.
Earlier today, those members were removed from the IFPA website, and a statement was issued by Women's Advisory Board member Zoë Vrabel to the IFPA Discord group. The statement reads:
"Over the past week, the remaining members of the IFPA Women’s Advisory Board have recognized that our working relationship with IFPA Leadership cannot be repaired. On November 19, we notified Josh Sharpe of our collective resignation.
Our intention is to finish the Women’s North American Championship Series/Women’s World Championship cycle for 2026 before fully stepping down, though our duties until then will be limited to those events.
We want to be clear that while we are incredibly disappointed with how the OBX decision was handled, we do not view the IFPA as a bigoted organization. What we do see is an organization that urgently needs to update its leadership structure and make space for a more diverse set of voices that can truly reflect the community it serves. A global player base deserves leadership that includes people from marginalized groups in meaningful and empowered roles.
We remain proud of what the Women’s Advisory Board has accomplished in the six years since our founding, and we hope that the IFPA continues to build on that progress. In our resignation letter, we outlined concrete recommendations to support that transition, and we leave it in the hands of IFPA Leadership to provide future staff with clarity, structure, and a true seat at the table.
There is still important work to be done in this space, but seeing so much recent support for trans and nonbinary players gives us hope for the future of competitive pinball. As ever, pinball is for everyone.
With gratitude,
Crystal, Karyn, Kim, and Zoe"
We'll continue monitoring and sharing updates as this develops.
