The preparations to compete in the next Olympic Games in Tokyo have reignited the debate on the inclusion of trans women (biologically male) in the women’s sport teams that are being formed. We have published articles about the medical and ethical implications of this eventual inclusion (read our article Transwoman and elite sport: scientific and ethical aspects and HERE).
Trans women in elite sport controversy
There has been no change in terms of our scientific and ethical approach since our last article. Here, we aim to introduce the reader to American public opinion on trans women in women’s sports. An item published in the US newspaper New Yorker (June 25, 2021), entitled Majority ‘No’ to transgender athletes versus women in Olympics, gives the figures of a recent poll on this controversy. It reports that “In a new Rasmussen Reports survey Friday, 56% of likely voters said it is unfair to make women compete against transgender athletes. The poll found that just 25% think it’s fair and 19% are not sure. The issue, long debated in student athletics, splashed onto the front pages this week when weightlifter Laurel Hubbard qualified for the games on New Zealand’s team, making history as an openly transgender athlete.” “Honestly, it doesn’t seem fair to me. You have to accept the IOC rules, but it is an issue that is not resolved and should be studied in the future” said Anna Van Bellinghen from Belgium, who competed in the same category. Hubbard has been disqualified and three women won the respective medals. (BBC, 2 August 2021).
Read the related articles HERE.
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