Hello everyone,

I’m interested in gathering thoughts and perspectives, particularly from the trans community, regarding trans women’s participation in women’s sports. This is a topic that often sparks debate, and I want to understand the various viewpoints better.

My question is: What are your opinions on biologically male trans individuals competing in women’s sports? Do you think there should be separate categories for trans athletes, or should they compete in accordance with their gender identity? I am looking for thoughtful, respectful discussions, as my intention is not to discriminate but to understand the complexities of this issue better.

Thank you for sharing your insights!

  • JoBo@feddit.uk
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    11 months ago

    Trans women who are using gender-affirming hormones are not “biologically male”. It takes about two years on hormones for their performance to equalise with cis women. The only advantage that remains is greater speed, due to the greater height gained from undergoing a male puberty. There are plenty of tall cis women, especially in sport, so this doesn’t really count as an unfair advantage. And, of course, trans kids who were lucky enough to get puberty blockers in time will fall in the same height range as their chosen gender.

    I’m not going to pretend that it’s an easy question. It isn’t, and it’s not unreasonable for cis women athletes to be concerned. But the proportion of athletes who are trans is tiny and the proportion who are champions in their sport is even tinier. I do think that hormonal transition is a pre-requisite (because otherwise they would be “biologically male” with respect to the physical characteristics which matter in sport) but I don’t think anyone should be getting their knickers in a twist beyond that, and they should definitely not be using it as an opportunity to be cruel.

    Most of the ‘discourse’ is pure transmisogyny, based on lies and fantasy demons. Most top professional athletes are biologically extraordinary, that’s why they are at the top.

    I don’t have much time to hunt out sources but this is a decent thread from my bookmarks.

    • anarchost@lemm.ee
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      11 months ago

      The only advantage that remains is greater speed, due to the greater height gained from undergoing a male puberty.

      Solution: puberty blockers

      • JoBo@feddit.uk
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        11 months ago

        For those fortunate enough to have had access to them young enough. I don’t think we should ban trans people from sport unless they did.

        • anarchost@lemm.ee
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          11 months ago

          To be clear, I only brought this up in case anyone runs into an upset person complaining about some combination of the existence of trans minors or trans athletes