Once Upon a Time in the Vest

Friday, March 24, 2023

V 13 N. 31 So Has the Transgender Issue Finally Been Settled? Maybe

 World Athletics  (that's Track and Field for most of our readers) has come out with a more definitive (harrumpph!) statement, ruling, position,  theory, belief, that transgender athletes will no longer be eligible to compete if they go through gender modification (is that the correct term?) after they have gone through puberty as a male.  It seems the issue is about boys becoming girls, not the reverse.  In many states in the US this would be illegal for an individual to do, because as minors their parents approving such a medical procedure, assuming they still have the power to decide on their child's healthcare,  would be in violation of local state laws.   All I'm saying is, Parents don't try to do this for your child in Tennessee, Alabama, Texas, and a few other places south of the Mason Dixon Line.  In those states one might want to consider 'conversion therapy'.  Psst!   It don't work, Bubba.

World Athletics is also holding the line on women born with XY chromosomal development aka Difference in Sex Development (DSD) such as Caster Semenya to require them to reduce their levels of testosterone to 2.5 nanomoles per liter of plasma for six months prior to competition or not be allowed to compete in 400 meters to one mile events.  This is what should be called anti-anti doping.  In other words, you have to dope in an anti-doping era to be eligible.  Got it?  It is really difficult to mess with Mother Nature and be fair.  Evolution if you believe in it has really made it difficult to categorize the human species.  And if you don't believe in evolution, then look at is as God's way of adding to the mischief and  confusion.

This seems to be a legitimate step forward, but it does not answer what to do for humans who choose to go through gender modification.  The next step for state, national and international federations is to decide whether they can accommodate a third classification for competition which will ensure fairness for all.  Historically this has not been easy even for allowing women as women to have a place in state, national and international competition.  Artificial roadblocks were constantly thrown in their path, including being potentially damaging to reproductive organs, though I can't see why men should then have been allowed to run over hurdles for the same reason.   Even  allowing women the basic right to vote took many years and lives to win.

Do not expect this to be the end of this debate.  As science learns more about the subject, we will be back at the table in the future trying to figure out what is fair to all.  And of course would it be fair or unfair to rescind Olympic medals of Semenya and a few others?  I would say no, because at the time Semenya won, there was no rule against her being herself.  

I welcome your views on this.

George Brose


Below is Sean Ingle's more erudite explanation of this decision by the World Athletics body which appeared in today's (March 24, 2023) The Guardian International.  


World Athletics has voted to ban transgender women from elite female competitions if they have undergone male puberty, in a decision the governing body said had been taken to “protect the future of the female category”.

Speaking after the ruling, which comes into effect on 31 March, the World Athletics president, Seb Coe, accepted that the decision would be contentious but said his sport had been guided by the “overarching principle” of fairness, as well as the science around physical performance and male advantage.



“Decisions are always difficult when they involve conflicting needs and rights between different groups, but we continue to take the view that we must maintain fairness for female athletes above all other considerations,” he said. “We believe the integrity of the female category in athletics is paramount.”

However Coe also stressed that he would set up a working group that would consult with transgender athletes and review any fresh research that emerged. “We’re not saying no forever,” he said.

Sports have been increasingly wrestling with the thorny issue of transgender participation in recent years, notably when New Zealand weightlifter Laurel Hubbard qualified for the Tokyo Olympics in having transitioned in her 30s.

Since Tokyo, the majority of sports have opted to allow trans women to compete if they lower their testosterone to 5 nanomoles per litre for 12 months. However emerging science showing that transgender women retain an advantage in strength, endurance, power, lung capacity – even after suppressing testosterone – had led World Athletics to propose a lower testosterone limit for at least 24 months in January.

However, Coe said there was “little support” for such a policy, with athletes and federations making it clear they wanted to prioritise fairness for female sport over inclusion.

“We entered into a consultation some months ago because we wanted to provoke debate,” he said. “It was really important that we heard from all our stakeholders, including the athletes, the coaches and member federations. And my goodness, we heard from them.”

Athletics becomes the latest sport to ban transgender women from female sport, following World Rugby in 2020 and World Swimming and the Rugby Football League last year. Swimming’s decision came shortly after Lia Thomas, who had been a moderate college swimmer as a male competitor in the United States, won an NCAA national college female title in 2022.

World Athletics’ decision is likely to be opposed by LGBTQ+ groups such as Stonewall. Speaking last month they urged sports to be as inclusive as possible. “The trans population may be small, but they have every right to participate in sports and enjoy the many physical, mental and community benefits of sports,” it said. “The scientific evidence base on trans people in sport is developing but is far from conclusive.”

However the move was welcomed by the campaign group Fair Play For Women. “It is the right thing for women and girls, in line with all the scientific evidence and common sense,” it said. “We now expect to see national federations follow the lead given to them by World Athletics, to restore the talent pathway for girls and young women, and to reinstate fair sport for women of all ages.”

In another significant decision, World Athletics also announced that all athletes with a difference in sex development would be barred from competing internationally in all events unless they reduced their testosterone to 2.5 nanomoles per litre for a minimum of six months.

Until now athletes with a DSD, who include former Olympic women’s champion Caster Semenya and Christine Mboma, the silver medallist in the 200m at the Tokyo Games, have been allowed to compete without medication except in events ranging from 400m to a mile.

However in 2019 the court of arbitration for sport ruled that 46 XY 5-ARD individuals with a difference of sex development, such as Semenya, “enjoy a significant sporting advantage … over 46 XX competitors without such DSD” due to biology.

Coe said that athletes with a DSD would now have to lower their testosterone for at least six months, which means they will miss this summer’s World Championships in Budapest.

“We have been prepared to take these issues head on,” added Coe. “In the past they would have been allowed to drift or be kicked into the long grass. That is not the nature of my leadership and it is certainly not the instincts of my council.”

In another statement, Lord Coe said that Russian athletes would remain barred from track and field “for the foreseeable future” because of the country’s invasion of Ukraine – despite the International Olympic Committee exploring a pathway for Russian and Belarusian athletes.

1 comment:

Wilfred Schnier said...

This is not an easy issue because sports have always prided themselves in being more fair than the general population. But what is fair? Enormous effort has been put forth to benefit female sports and female athletes to ensure they would be treated equally to men. We are not there yet but are very close. The problem with boys transitioning to girls, especially after puberty, is that they probably do have an unfair advantage as seen by numerous examples in recent years. If so that would not be fair and World Athletics would be correct. The obvious answer would be to create a third category, as George suggested, but would the numbers add up to a reasonable category and would that category be mistreated much like their people are anyway. Sports have bragged about being open to all but now that is not exactly true. So what should we do? I suggest someone do extensive scientific research to determine a solution. Right now the third category appears to be the best solution, even though the numbers would probably not add up to legitimate competition. If that third transgender category would prove to be a good solution, then it would probably help the mental health of those who participate. I believe it is worth a try.

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