Browne was born on May 13, 1993, in Oakville, Ontario.[1] He was assigned female at birth and played in women's competitions during his ice hockey career; he came out as a transgender man in 2016 and was the first openly transgender athlete in a professional team sport during his career.[2] As a young adult, he attended Appleby College in Oakville. While he was on the school's team, they won two Ontario championships.[3] Browne was a member of the Ontario provincial team that gained the silver medal at the 2011 Canada Winter Games.[4]
Browne received a scholarship to Mercyhurst University and made his NCAA debut on September 30, 2011. With the Lakers, Browne scored five points in 34 games.[1] After one season with the Lakers, Browne transferred to the University of Maine.[6][7]
Browne's debut with Maine took place against Quinnipiac on October 12, 2012. He scored his first goal with Maine on January 19, 2013, against the Vermont Catamounts. The last goal of his NCAA career occurred on February 21, 2015, against the Connecticut Huskies.[citation needed]
Professional
Buffalo Beauts
Browne signed a professional contract with the Buffalo Beauts of the newly formed NWHL on August 29, 2015.[7] In the 2015–16 season, he played in 18 games, scored 5 goals and had 12 points. He played in 5 games in the NWHL postseason, scoring 2 goals and 2 assists.[8]
On May 14, 2016, Browne signed a second one-year contract with the Beauts.[9] In October 2016, Browne came out publicly as a transgender man and thus became the first openly transgender athlete in professional American hockey; he had previously privately disclosed his gender identity to coaches while playing at Maine. Browne stated that he would not hormonally transition until the end of his professional playing career, as the hormones involved in female-to-male gender transition violate anti-doping regulations.[10]
On March 14, 2017, Browne announced he would be retiring from the NWHL at the end of the season to begin hormone replacement therapy and continue his gender transition in privacy.[12] On March 19, 2017, Browne won the Isobel Cup with the Buffalo Beauts, becoming the first openly transgender athlete to win a national championship on a team sport.[citation needed]
Metropolitan Riveters
On August 7, 2017, he announced he would be putting his retirement on hold and would instead return for the 2017–18 season with the Metropolitan Riveters.[13] On April 25, 2018, Browne won the NWHL championship with the Metropolitan Riveters in the team's first Isobel Cup win.[14]
On April 30, 2018, Browne again announced his retirement from the NWHL.[15]
Since his retirement from the NWHL, Browne has primarily devoted his time to speaking engagements across North America. He has given talks and spoken on panels at colleges, such as Ohio State University, American University, and Fleming College as well as LGBTQ events, such as Outsports Pride.[17]
In August 2019, Browne announced on his personal Twitter account that he was beginning a new career as an actor.[18] He emphasized that he plans to advocate for more transgender visibility in his new venture as he had in his athletic career. In 2024, Browne began developing a short film, incorporating elements of his own life into the story, and gaining funding on Kickstarter.[19]
Browne has made multiple television appearances since his 2018 retirement. He was featured in an episode of both Y: The Last Man[20] and Murdoch Mysteries, in 2021 and 2022 respectively.[21] In 2023, he appeared in three episodes of the mystery drama series Nancy Drew.[22]
