Contrary to some public beliefs that have been circulating, transgender people have existed for as long as humanity has been coherent with self-identity. When settlers initially observed Native tribes, they noted that most nations recognized multiple genders and a prevalence of respect and a greater understanding of the nuances of self-identity (National Park Service, 2018) In the Torah, there are eight genders described in-depth with varying nuances for a variety of identities. (Kukula, 2006) Transgender people have been a part of sports for as long as they have existed, even if they have remained closeted. Saying transgender women do not belong in women’s sports is an argument rooted in misogyny and transphobia by linking strength and gender to sex. I will be discussing the history of transgender people in sports, issues with current systems, and some solutions that aim to bring unification of the issue.
When Fallon Fox made her debut in 2013 as the first transgender athlete in MMA history, misinformation immediately overtook her career. One primary argument was that she broke her opponent’s skull when it was a broken orbital, which is a somewhat common injury in MMA. Fallon also lost to UFC Bantamweight fighter Ashlee Evans-Smith. Most transgender women are only spotlighted as a threat when they win, not when they lose. (Zeigler, 2021)
Recently, Lia Thomas, a 22-year-old swimmer with the University of Pennsylvania has had a spotlight on her recent wins, with many individuals claiming it was unfair due to her size in comparison to her opponents. She is the first transgender athlete to win a Division I national championship, but many individuals forget that she has been on hormone replacement therapy since 2019 and has followed every guideline set in place. “I just want to show trans kids and younger athletes that they’re not alone. They don’t have to choose between who they are and the sport they love.” (Staff, 2022)
Lia Thomas compared similarly with her predecessors in each event she has participated in, but advocates against her competing are continuing to spread misinformation about a highly complex subject they are vastly undereducated on. Currently, Thomas remains nine seconds behind Katie Ledecky’s time of four minutes and 24.06 seconds for the 500-yard freestyle. She beat Emma Weyant by just 1.75 seconds. For most sports analysts, this would hardly be considered a landslide victory by any means. (McCarriston, 2022)
Segregating sports by gender has led to misogynistic exploitation of women for decades. WNBA players make a minute fraction of what their counterparts do. According to the Kennesaw State University’s comparison of player salaries, male players with the same. (Baker, 2020) Lingerie Football is one popularized way women have been able to professionally play football, but most college and NFL teams prohibit women from participating. Historically, women have attempted to popularize their own leagues of football, with modern players able to push research for better padding to prevent injury. (Legends Football League, 2021)
Although there are no specific rules against women playing in the NFL, because of weight class issues, they are unable to qualify. However, this falls directly under the same line of reasoning that men are always more capable than women, which is a direct fallacy. Even in non-contact sports like racing, women must prove themselves significantly before making similar pay. Danica Patrick is the 8th highest-paid NASCAR driver and is arguably one of the most successful racers in the history of motorsports. Her size and stature have no determination on her ability to play, and NASCAR follows the individualized format that would benefit other sports if they adopted similar formatting. (Badenhausen, 2012) Segregating by gender also promotes harmful narratives about the gender spectrum by ignoring non-binary individuals.
Across the country, many states have passed laws prohibiting transgender individuals from participating in sports as their identified gender. In Tennessee, K-12 public schools and sports have been the target of anti-transgender legislation specifically saying that transgender children must play on the side of their gender assigned at birth, or they may not play at all. HB3/SB 228 is a direct attack on transgender students that was passed in 2021. Specifically, the bill addresses transfeminine individuals due to sexist research that is misconstrued for their discrimination. (TrackBill, 2021)
On the national level, 2021 had a record number of bills passed enacting anti-LGBTQ+ measures into law. However, a PBS/NPR/Marist poll states that 67% of Americans, including 66% of Republicans, oppose the new anti-transgender sports ban legislation across 30 states. (Ronan, 2021)
Separating all individual sports by weight class would prevent sexism as well as othering from separating transgender individuals from their cisgender counterparts. Sports would be more adequately equipped to handle individuals of all body types with this form of classification. It would also include intersex and nonbinary individuals that have been excluded from the conversation.
The myth that men are consistently stronger than women is rooted in incomplete studies and assumptions based on size alone most often. For instance, in a study from the National Library of Medicine comparing relative strength and power performances between male and female athletes, their results were based on comparing 16 men and 14 women. However, it is directly stated that the men had a body mass on average of 88.9 kg versus 58.1 kg for the women. That is a major difference that led to them correlating muscle thickness and lean body mass distribution to strength. (Bartolomei et al., 2021) However, a more thorough study published in 2018 by the Muscle, Ligaments, and Tendons journal suggests that any sex-related differences are reduced with training. (Mascherini et al., 2018)
When comparing aspects like cardiovascular fitness, bone and ligament structures, strength, and endurance, individuals with similar sizes performed tests on similar standards. (Latham, 2018) Many people are worried about the testosterone levels of transgender athletes, but they are required to reach certain levels before they are allowed to play. This is also contradictory due to the existence of transgender men in men’s sports not having to reach certain estrogen requirements or being forced to participate on the women’s team while having the testosterone levels of a cisgender man. (Torres, 2022)
Transgender women will prey on cisgender women is a highly emotional argument stemming directly from the fear of predatory cisgender men that aim to abuse women. At this time, transgender athletes are required to follow a strict set of standards regarding hormone replacement therapy, how and when they can play, and more according to the NCAA. First, the student must fill out a Transgender Student-Athlete Eligibility Reporting Form. Next, the must-have is a Medical Professional Hormone Suppression Confirmation Form. They also need a Serum Testosterone Level Lab completed no more than four weeks before the election date of their sport. Finally, students must send all documentation to their school and fax everything to the NCAA for approval. (NCAA, 2022)
Overall, it is discriminatory to exclude transgender individuals from participating in their preferred field. Without intersectionality, we will lack the ability to move forward toward instilling equity in our society. By removing gender stereotypes from sports and replacing them with specific weight and height classes, these issues can be dissolved over time.
References
Badenhausen, K. (2012, February 22). Nascar's Highest-Paid Drivers. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/.../nascars-highest-paid-drivers/...
Baker, E. (2020). A comparison of NBA and WNBA player salaries. Coles College of Business. https://coles.kennesaw.edu/econopp/docs/Baker-Elle.pdf
Bartolomei, S., Grillone, G., Michele, R., & Cortesi, M. (2021, February 9). A Comparison between Male and Female Athletes in Relative Strength and Power Performances. PubMed.
Falk, L. (2015, November 9). The 8 genders of the Talmud. Jewish Telegraphic Agency. https://www.jta.org/jewn.../2015/the-6-genders-of-the-talmud
Kukula, E. (2006). Terms for Gender Diversity in Classical Jewish Texts. TransTorah. https://www.transtorah.org/.../Classical_Jewish_Terms_for...
Latham, A. (2018, June 28). Physiological differences between male and female athletes. Work - Chron.com. https://work.chron.com/physiological-differences-between...
Legends Football League. (2021, October 25). Legends Football League. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://www.lflus.com/
Mascherini, G., Castizo-Olier, J., Irurtia, A., Petri, C., & Galanti, G. (2018, April 16). Differences between the sexes in athletes’ body composition and lower limb bioimpedance values. PubMed Central (PMC). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5908334/
McCarriston, S. (2022, March 18). LIA Thomas, Penn swimmer, becomes first known transgender athlete to win division I national title. CBSSports.com. https://www.cbssports.com/.../lia-thomas-penn-swimmer.../
National Park Service. (2018, February 20). Gender and Sexuality in Native America. https://www.nps.gov/.../gender-and-sexuality-in-native...
NCAA. (2022, January 28). Transgender student-athlete eligibility review procedures. https://www.ncaa.org/.../transgender-student-athlete...
Ronan, W. (2021, May 7). 2021 officially becomes worst year in recent history for LGBTQ state legislative attacks as unprecedented number of states enact record-shattering number of Anti-LGBTQ measures into law. HRC. https://www.hrc.org/.../2021-officially-becomes-worst...
Sanchez, R. (2022, March 3). Lia Thomas Interview: The story of the Penn swimmer at the heart of the transgender athlete debate. Sports Illustrated. https://www.si.com/.../lia-thomas-penn-swimmer...
Staff, S. (2022, March 20). Lia Thomas: Penn swimmer closes out NCAA career. Sports Illustrated. https://www.si.com/.../lia-thomas-finishes-eighth-100...
Torres, M. (2022, March 19). Students collide on trans-athlete’s competition. Technique. https://nique.net/.../students-collide-on-trans-athletes.../
TrackBill. (2021, April 6). Tennessee HB3. Legislative Tracking Software | TrackBill. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://trackbill.com/.../tennessee-house-bill-3.../1952530/
Zeigler, C. (2021, February 22). 4 myths and lies being told about trans MMA fighter Fallon Fox. Outsports. https://www.outsports.com/.../fallon-fox-trans-mma...
Comments