Transgender in Sports
Care There are controversies surrounding transgender people’s involvement in sporting activities. The specifics of female and male activities in sports has become the central theme in the past decades. Transsexual women’s engagement in sports has faced serious opposition as consideration is given to hormonal elements, physiological factors, and pre-transition. In athletic activities, transgender sportspeople have been forced to use their assigned sex identity at birth and undergo sex verification testing. Such regulations have been opposed by various transgender activities and groups, terming them as unfair competition. There are also issues of inequality in the treatment of transgender people in sports in which normal sportspeople are favored. As the world evolves, it is essential to foster equal treatment of transgender in sports activities. Due to dynamism in the sports world today, transgender people deserve equal treatment in sports and not judged based on their physic.
Abstract
It is important to understand and accept that there are transgender people in the world. They are human beings like any other being who deserves to be treated equally with a lot of respect. Transgenders have abilities and skills just like other people; therefore, it is unfair to impose unfair rules for them. Today, some transgenders have competed in multiple sporting events non-conclusive to their birth gender. This research will focus on available options in a gender-sensitive time in our history right now. Further, the paper will examine various unfair practices that discriminate against transgender in sports. Should girls born as girls be allowed to play in boys leagues? Should boys born as boys be allowed to play in girls leagues? It is also vital to understand in these leagues why rules are different, why the equipment is different, why is it the same sport but adjusted due to physical features.
Majumder & Tarafder (2019) noted that for decades, the field of sports had been dominated by males since sports are perceived to require the masculine nature in men. However, the emergence and rise of women’s participation in sports changed the narrative as more and more women got engaged in sports activities. Gradually, gay sportsmen also emerged, further shifting the perception that only men can participate in sports. In 1975, transgender participation in sports activities was full-blown as high-profile tennis player Renee Richards came into limelight. The introduction of transgender in sports was protested for a long time, and new rules were formed to guide sporting activities. The Women’s Tennis Association introduced new rules such as the Barr body test that could identify body chromosomes (European Commission, 2014). In the year 2003, the International Olympics Committee Medical Commission established new rules for athletes who had undergone reassignment. According to the IOC medical team, the athletes had to conduct sex reassignment surgery to change their gonadectomy and genitalia (Majumder & Tarafder, 2019). Further, the participants had to produce legal recognition of their gender and conduct hormone therapy for a given time to align them with their new genders. In 2004, the transgenders were allowed to participate in sports activities after meeting the previous guidelines. During 2019, the world Olympics, the world athletes reduced the limitations for transgender competitors, only requiring women to produce written and signed documents declaring their sex identity.
Equity of Game
Mascherini et al. (2017), despite the above moves to introduce fair participation for transgenders in sports, there are still various challenges that need to be addressed. First, there is gender inequality and sexual harassment spread among coaches towards their athletes. Transgender women still face gender inequality in the sports field that comes from those in charge and management. Cases of sexual harassment from coaches and male sports colleagues are issues that impose a threat to transgenders. Women who participate in sports are vulnerable and are possible victims of sexual harassment (Jones, B. et al., 2017). Women require specific policies and ethical guidelines to fell more protected and safer within their sports activities. Since the sport is commonly perceived as both source of cooperation and unethical behavior, gender discrimination requires deep studying to approach the fundamental integrity of the sport. The stereotypical views are highly spread within the sporting arena and have to be eliminated. People should not confuse the woman’s body with sex since it is the main trigger to limit them with some sport kinds.
Jones et al. (2017) pointed out that everyone has a role to play in bringing back sanity sports and allow women to be equitable participate in activities. The governments, through sports and gender ministries, have the obligation to formulate and implement regulations that protect women in sports. Men also have a greater role in accepting women fully into sports with a lot of respect. If men could accept and incorporate transgender women in sports, then they will feel respected and have a sense of belonging. Further, the media has a special role in change people’s perception of transgender and women involved in sports. Women’s sport is of great concern now since more and more people insist on its more extensive broadcasting and treating not as a boring one. The mass media make a great contribution to gender inequality since they show the men’s sports competition, preferably. Otherwise, the absence of intrusive intervention in people’s heads significantly reduces prejudice towards female athletes.
Secondly, there are different rules based on the sex of the participants (Scheadler & Wagstaff, 2018). Different sports leagues have different rules because of specific variables in the genetic composition of genders. For example, female boxing fights are shorter than those of men. It is noted that the rules are also more stringent for women for protection, in which some cases they have failed to protect the women. Of interest is to note that males have larger amounts of testosterone in their bodies, which makes them more masculine than women (Fasting & Sand, 2015). Due to their high masculinity, men tend to be stronger and stable than women, which makes women vulnerable to injuries during sports activities. This requires that sports authorities should come up with appropriate rules and regulations that fully protect women from physical and mental dangers. The body composition of women makes them unable to engage in certain male sports. For many years, women have thrived in sports just like men due to their effort and willingness to take the challenge like men. They, therefore, deserve fair competition and the opportunity to exploit their abilities.
All are supposed to be fair from a physical limitation perspective. Different rules apply for different sports for both men and women (May, 2019). Therefore, for transgenders, engaging in either sport would either lead to a disadvantage or an advantage to the participant. Having different rules in different sports for both males and females makes the games fair for everyone. As men as a disadvantage on their side in their games, women are also disadvantaged by their rules in their games. This gives no room for unfairness if everyone sticks to their game. A point to note is that male transgenders engaging in female sports will have an advantage at the events at the expense of other female competitors. In a similar manner, female transgenders will have a disadvantage of engaging in male sports due to the rules and physical limitations. This shows that without other evils of gender discrimination and sexual harassment, transgender sports should be encouraged since it is fair. With the right rules that can protect women from discrimination, oppression, and abuse, then transgender people need to be given a similar opportunity as other people. There is also a clash of the titan since the physicality and equipment used in male and female sports are different despite them being similar (Sevelius, 2013). For example, the nets used in men’s volleyball games are hanged a bit higher than that of females. Further, the balls used are also different. As highlighted earlier, males have higher testosterone levels in their bodies, making them able to handle heavy and more rigorous equipment compared to women. Finally, the equipment in female sporting events is designed to suit their body composition and behavior, variables that may be advantageous to male transgenders in their sports. It is therefore evident that both males and females are either advantaged or disadvantaged in one way or the other. This makes the involvement of transgender in sports a fair thing that should not be discouraged.
In conclusion, it is evident that because of drastic changes in the sports world today, transgender people deserve equal treatment in sports and not judged based on their physic. Since both males and females advantaged or disadvantaged by participating in games of the opposite sex, there is complete transparency and fairness. Transgenders deserve fair competition and opportunity to exploit their abilities like other people. The stereotypical views that have highly spread within the sporting arena and should be eliminated, especially through the media. People should not confuse the woman’s body with sex since it is the main trigger to limit them with some sport kinds.
References
European Commission. (2014). Gender equality in sport: proposal for strategic actions 2014–2020. Retrieved from https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/7e7a7ff2-5bff-42b4-90f9-8266b3ddc01c
Fasting, K., & Sand, T. S. (2015). Narratives of sexual harassment experiences in sport. Qualitative research in sport, exercise and health, 7(5), 573-588
Jones, B. et al. (2017). Sport and Transgender People: A Systematic Review of the Literature Relating to Sport Participation and Competitive Sports Policies. Springer, 47(4): 701-716.
Majumder, A., & Tarafder, R. (2019). A Scientific Aspect of Transgenders. Notion Press.
Mascherini, G., Castizo-Olier, J., Irurtia, A., Petri, C., & Galanti, G. (2017). Differences between the sexes in athletes’ body composition and lower limb bioimpedance values. Muscles, ligaments and tendons journal, 7(4), 573
May, C. (2019, August). Sexuality and Gender Perspectives on Sports Ethics. Retrieved from https://www.clearinghouseforsport.gov.au/knowledge_base/sport_participation/sport_integrity/sexuality_and_gender_perspectives_on_sports_ethics
Scheadler, T., & Wagstaff, A. (2018). Exposure to women’s sports: Changing attitudes toward female athletes. The Sport Journal, 19, 1-17.
Sevelius, J. M. (2013). Gender affirmation: A framework for conceptualizing risk behavior among transgender women of color. Sex roles, 68(11-12), 675-689.