Transgenders...Is It A Disadvantage to Compete?

This photo represents the confusion about transgenders and where they belong regarding athletics.

How Transgenders are Treated For Athletic Competition at All Levels

Where should transgender athletes be placed for sport competitions? Do they fall into their birth gender category or with the gender they now identify with? The New York Times article states in the youth leagues, there was absolutely zero talk of what to do with kids who took estrogen and testosterone shots or those who had a sex change surgery. The rule was if you were a boy, you played on boy teams and if you were a girl, you played on girl teams. There were no categories for transgender athletes or one’s in the process of transitioning. The article covers the issue of not knowing what to do with transgenders. A group of Texas school superintendents took a vote on what to do with transgender student-athletes and they chose to look at the students birth certificates. Whatever your birth certificate said, was what sports team you played on. Whereas, California schools gave students the opportunity to decide what team they played on and Indiana schools allowed students who looked a certain way to play on that sexes sports team.

A common concern arose with these decisions and that was, “Won’t girls who are not transgender be at a disadvantage with transgenders on their team or opposing team?”.  Boys who transition to girls are thought to be at a higher advantage because of their testosterone levels. In early stages of the transformation process not all patients take hormonal shots, which is why girls would be at a disadvantage playing with transgenders who were boys first, according to competitors, coaches, and fans. Excelle Sports wrote an article that focuses on a specific transgender woman who was allowed to participate on a womens volleyball team. The people of Hawaii were not pleased with the decision for transgenders to play on regular sports teams as the competition would be “unfair.” Transgender females are disliked in sports competitions because they are seen to possess different skills than biological women. Transgender women have more testosterone because they were originally men. Transgender women ingest testosterone which enlarges muscle mass and strength, hence destroying the false idea that women were at a disadvantage competing with transgenders.

This is a photo of Chris Mosier, the first transgender athlete to compete for the United States.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 2003 allowed transgender athletes to participate in the Olympics only if they had hormonal injections two years before the competition started. In order to be completely cleared to play, transgenders also had to have genitalia surgery and to change all legal documents to their new gender. After studies showed that transgender women do not have a higher advantage in competition, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) changed their rules for participation. Transgenders looking to compete did not need genitalia surgery and sex reassignment surgery, as it has nothing to do with how one performs. Most transgender athletes who have the opportunity to participate in the olympics do not do so because they afraid of the hate and the possibility of being exposed that they are transgender.

The Washington Post wrote an article about transgender athletes in the Olympics and how transgender men had no restrictions for competition because they were seen as never being able to compete equally to biological men, since they were originally born women. Cisgender women who competed in the Olympics spoke out about how they found it unfair to compete side by side with a transgender because the transgender women still have bone structure and characteristics of men. Studies showed that transgender women are actually the ones with the disadvantage as estrogen shots suppress the testosterone. A cause of the supressants decrease muscle mass, making it harder to strengthen the muscles. Speed and strength are also lost due to the testosterone suppressants transgender women have to take.

The Washington post article points out that being transgender does not mean you are the only one with a disadvantage. In all sport competitions, cisgender or transgender, every sport has disadvantages: short, tall, skinny, fat, slow, fast, etc. Being transgender does not indicate you are less likely to succeed. It simply is an obstacle one must overcome the same as any person in life, it is a small set back that will be conquered with the right mentality.