Transgender Athletes are Cheats

Transgender athletes are cheats. There, I've said it! In the movie " A League of their Own", the star Tom Hanks says that there's no crying in in baseball. And that should also apply to cheating. When a natural  born man is allowed to take part in a woman's sport on the basis that they identify as female, well, sorry to tell you, but that's nothing more than cheating.

Introduction: Transgender Athletes are Cheats

This year on February 16th, two high school juniors won both State and National prizes at the Connecticut State Open indoor track championships. But here's the rub. They both are biological males who identify themselves transgender. The old joke asks how do we know the gender of chromosomes? We look in their genes! If you were going to bet on the race with GTbets, it might be safer to back off and look for a gender equal race. These two runners may identify themselves as women, but that doesn't make them any more female than if the author identifies himself as a racoon or a bicycle.

Sugar and Spice and all Things Nice

Most sports are about the physical contest. Male and female forms exist in the context of genetics. To allow athletes to compete as the opposite sex because they have taken hormones or steroids makes a farce of this. Drug use is big no-no in all competitive sports, so why are we giving these players a free pass? We can all agree in the sentiments that women have been treated as less than men historically, be it in the form of less than equal pay or having to suffer sexual abuse in the work place. But let's try and not throw the baby out with the bath water here. There are some basic and irrefutable facts. Men are on the whole stronger than women. They possess greater strength and more speed. From birth. And yes, I know there are mixed sex sports. But that's a story for another day.

Slugs and Snails and Puppy-Dogs' Tails

Recently one of the most famous tennis players of all time, Martina Navratilova was labeled as a "transphobic" for daring to speak out. In online sport book news in the US she had dared to use the word "cheating". Quite rightly, she pointed out that transgendered woman have an unfair advantage when playing against women. After writing an op-ed in The Sunday Times titled “The rules on trans athletes reward cheats and punish the innocent,” she wrote, “Letting men compete as women simply if they change their name and take hormones is unfair — no matter how those athletes may throw their weight around.” In other words, transgender athletes are cheats. There was a massive snow flake outcry. And though she apologized, she did not back down. The former British swimmer, Sharron Davies, told the BBC that she feels the same way. She believes that trans athletes should not be competing in woman's events. Period.

Sharron Davies

Having had first hand experience losing to someone who was taking male hormones, Sharron Davies is clear on her views. She remembers standing next to Kornelia Ender from East Germany at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. Davies described her as being "absolutely ginormous". It was later revealed that Ender had been doping. Again in the 1980 Moscow Olympics , Davies came second to Petra Schneider, who later admitted to taking performance drugs. Though Davies makes a point to say that transgender athletes are not cheating as they are operating with the rules. But, having seen the effects of male hormone up close and personal, she has mixed feeling about the direction being taken. As she said, “We know that they came off the testosterone to compete,” she explained, enabling competitors to pass drugs tests. “But the muscle they’d built was retained.”

Walk Like a Duck

During the about meeting in  Connecticut, student-athlete Selina Soule called out the unfairness of the games. Her pleas come because she missed out on a nation finals place, thanks to these transgendered athletes winning their respective matches. Speaking to the Washington Times after the loss, she said, “We all know the outcome of the race before it even starts; it’s demoralizing. I fully support and am happy for these athletes for being true to themselves. They should have the right to express themselves in school, but athletics have always had extra rules to keep the competition fair.”

A Girl with Hairy Legs

In the US, some States are waking up the the glaring inequalities that can happen if you actively promote one group at the detriment of another. South Dakota is picking up the baton after the furor over it's recently held athletics meeting. A new bill is under consideration. It  would ensure the sex stated on the birth certificate would determine the “sexual identity” for taking part in high school athletics. At the moment 17 States allow trans athletes to compete as women. Other States already make it more difficult. This would also make betting on sports fairer. For example, GTbets would be happier for punters to have a level playing field.

Wearing Pink isn't Going to Make a Difference

According online sports book news in the US, the guidelines set down by the International Olympic Committee, trans athletes can compete. The proviso is that the athletes have to prove that their level of testosterone is below a certain level. And at least one year before competing. But American cyclist Jennifer Wagner-Assali says that one year of lowered testosterone isn’t enough. She says it takes much longer to mitigate the physical advantages that those born male will have. She goes on to say, “Male athletes are bigger, stronger and faster than female athletes. This underpins the need for a protected category for females to compete fairly.”

Here Comes the Dystopian Future

It's great that our society is looking to be more inclusive. But sometimes there are legitimate reasons why boundaries actually exist. It makes no biological sense to blindly support trans women competing against women. Trying to manufacture a utopia is misguided. Until then, many people will continue to believe that transgender athletes are cheats. At the end of the day, trans athletes deserve their own category. And like-wise those who identify as clouds. Or fish!