43-year-old weightlifter Laurel Hubbard is likely to become the first transgender Olympian athlete this summer. As a man, she competed in men’s weightlifting before transitioning in 2013. The resulting controversy is covered by the U.K Mail Online, in an article titled: “‘It’s another kick in the teeth for female athletes’: Former British Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies hits out at decision to allow transgender weightlifter Laurel Hubbard to compete in Tokyo.” Former British swimmer Sharron Davies is voicing an objection:
We need to talk respectfully and find fair solutions, maybe a female category and an open and inclusive category. I’m not anti-transgender but I’m pro female sport, facts and fairness. Feelings are no fair way to categorise sport.
Other athletes feel that they cannot voice an opinion. According to this article:
Several female athletes share the view of Davies but are told to stay silent by sponsors to avoid controversy and a potentially toxic fall-out with the trans community.
How much of an advantage do female transgender athletes have over women athletes? Here are three excerpts from the article:
Biological differences between males and females are huge, with insurmountable performance implications. A male versus female gap of even 10 per cent, as is found in running events, is so large that many thousands of men outperform the very best woman.
Many high school boys sprint faster, throw further and jump higher than women’s Olympic champions. Strength and power differences are even larger than in running. At the same weight and height, men lift 30 per cent heavier weights, and produce 30 per cent more power.
. . .
These changes are ‘performance positive’, enhancing athleticism in all but a few sports, and the result is a performance gulf, rather than gap, between typical males and females, or between Olympic-level athletic males and females. It is this difference, ranging from 10-50 per cent depending on the attribute . . . “
According to the article, for an athlete who has already gone through male puberty, using hormone suppressants for 12 months only slightly decreases these advantages.
See the full article for more quotes and statistics.
