Sport is supposed to be for everyone. In its most raw, most fundamental form, if you want to play sport, then you should be able to participate. According to the United Nations, ‘sport builds bridges between individuals and across communities’ and must, they continue, be used to ‘promote understanding and support…for positive social change.’
So, if that is the case, why have The International Swimming Federation (FINA) recently voted to approve a new policy that will restrict most transgender athletes from competing in elite women’s aquatics competitions? Furthermore, why has The International Rugby League (IRL) banned transgender players from women’s international competitions?
Basically, the new ruling in swimming states, that if you transition from male to female before you reach the age of 12 (i.e., prior to reaching puberty) you are OK to take part. If you don’t there is no place for you in competitive areas of the sport. The decision in rugby league was made on the grounds of perceived risk – by that I assume that they mean that if a woman is tackled by a transgender woman, the ‘hit’ will be harder, more painful and could lead to greater injury.
These moves follow one recently taken by cycling’s world governing body, the UCI, who has toughened its stance on when riders can compete if they are transitioning from male to female.
On the flip side, late last year the International Olympic Committee (IOC) released a framework document on ‘fairness, inclusion and non-discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sex variations’. The IOC said that it consulted with more than 250 athletes and stakeholders and concluded that, ‘athletes should not be deemed to have an unfair or disproportionate competitive advantage due to their sex variations, physical appearance and/or transgender status.’
So, who’s right and who’s wrong? Well, that’s up to you and your personal stance, but there are plenty of convincing and divisive arguments out there.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in April of this year that transgender women have no place in women’s sport. Former British Olympic swimmer, Sharon Davies agrees, saying that in a sport where fractions of a second make a difference, it is the right call to exclude those who were born male from a female competition. However, former elite women’s rugby league player Caroline Layt, who played in Australia as a transgender woman, says by creating an exclusion policy is sending the wrong message to young people, and telling trans kids that they are not worthy!
Ultimately of course, if you pit men against women in a sporting environment where speed or strength play a significant role, men tend to win. Women, biologically, are often considered smaller and less strong and that is sometimes a deciding factor in sport. But, it is not always a factor. In golf for example – a sport of skill, poise and judgement, where keeping a cool head, taking your time and evaluating your options are crucial – Swedish female player Linn Grant recently won on the DP World tour.
But actually, for me, it is not about winning or succeeding, it is about giving everyone, no matter how they were born and what journey they have been on, the chance to acquire a seat at the sporting table. Being ‘accepted’ in a global society that still struggles to get its collective head around the issue of people wanting to change their gender is much more powerful than a win, a title, a medal or a podium finish. I don’t know what it is like to live a life where you feel as though you don’t belong, in a body that feels false and an existence that feels alien. Most people are generally happy in their skin but if you are not and if you are brave enough to take the step to change that, shouldn’t the rest of us not just applaud that and throw open the door of acceptance?
Perhaps those athletes who train for years to make small improvements in their performance and are beaten by someone with a chromosomal difference would beg to differ. But, offering someone the opportunity to take part is surely the biggest win that sport can provide and, if ‘positive social change’ is ever going to be achieved, then the duty on all sports to take a lead has surely never been greater.
By Will Cope
Check out Will Cope’s blog Sports Wrangle HERE
