Swimmer Lia Thomas latest target in 'culture war' on trans athletes, critics say
Slew of bills targetting LGBTQ community going through U.S. legislatures this year
When transgender athletes win, they make headlines — but when they lose, it goes largely unnoticed.
That imbalance can perpetuate the idea that trans women athletes have an unfair advantage, according to Michele K. Donnelly, a sports management professor at Brock University.
She recalls speculation and scrunity that Laurel Hubbard, a weightlifter from New Zealand and the first openly transgender athlete to compete at the Tokyo Games, would "clean the floor" of women weightlifters. But when Hubbard failed to medal, little more was heard of her, she said.
"It skews the story…. The fact that our attention is drawn in these very small number of cases where trans women are being very successful in women's sport," Donnelly said.
Last month, swimmer Lia Thomas, who won the U.S. National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) 500-yard freestyle, became the latest transgender athlete to face backlash for her athletic performance. The University of Pennsylvania senior is the first known transgender athlete to win an NCAA swimming championship.
Calling Thomas's participation "a fraud," Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a proclamation declaring Emma Weyant, who placed second, as the winner.
WATCH | New Zealand's Laurel Hubbard first transgender athlete to compete at Olympics
Chicago-based writer Parker Molloy calls the backlash to Thomas's win part of the "culture war" that emerged around the civil rights and same-sex marriage movements.
"It's all part of the same long thread of challenging decisions and trying to separate marginalized communities," said Molloy in an interview with Day 6 host Peter Armstrong.
The criticism comes as a slew of bills targeting LGBTQ people, and transgender people in particular, make their way through legislatures across the United States. On Wednesday, Republican governors in Oklahoma and Arizona signed bills banning transgender students from girls' sports.
Alaina Hardie, a black belt in jiu-jitsu, says she finds it troubling.
"This is not an evidence-based thing. This is like an attack on trans people. That's what I find terrifying," said Hardie who recently returned to Toronto after years living in Montana.
Perception of unfair advantage unfounded: prof
According to Donnelly, there is little scientific, reliable research on the performance advantages of trans women compared to cisgender women. The International Olympic Committee's (IOC) recently updated framework for trans athletes indicates a lack of scientific consensus on the role of testosterone in performance across all sports.
Still, the idea persists among opponents.
"I literally had someone say to me last week that trans women are coming to ruin women's sport," Hardie said.
Elite sport is "not normal," she adds, noting that many athletes are praised for the unique attributes that make them good at their sport.
"Is it fair for Georges St-Pierre to rip through the UFC and destroy everyone when he fights? Is it fair for Michael Phelps or Serena Williams or any of the other incredible athletes?" she told CBC Radio. "High-level sport is fundamentally not fair."
Part of the backlash against trans women athletes stems from the belief that men are inherently better athletically than women, said Travers, a sociology professor at Simon Fraser University whose research largely focuses on LGBTQ inclusion in sports.
"The assumption that somebody assigned male at birth is always going to be a better athlete is based on that assumption," said Travers, who goes by one name.
"In fact there's incredible overlaps in performance, but these are rendered invisible."
Despite her success at the NCAA, Thomas is not "dominant" in the sport compared to fellow swimmer Katie Ledecky, said Travers.
Ledecky, a highly-decorated American Olympic swimmer, still holds multiple NCAA records. Her record in the 500-yard free swim is just over eight seconds faster than Thomas's at 4:25:15.
We show a distinct lack of imagination when we claim that we can't imagine any other way of organizing support that could be fair or could be meaningful to the participants.- Michele K. Donnelly, Brock University sports management professor
Inclusion policies reworked
Experts say that because federal legislation restricts discrimination based on gender identity, it's less likely that governments will implement laws banning trans athletes from sports in Canada.
Several Canadian sports organizations have developed policies inclusive of trans women athletes and in 2016, the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport released guidance that aims to foster inclusivity in sports.
In its Trans Inclusion Policy, for example, Softball Canada states that players do not need to undergo hormone therapy or disclose their transgender identity in order to play.
Late last year, the IOC updated its framework for eligibility of trans athletes, first introduced in 2004, to be more inclusive.
The framework calls on individual sporting bodies to set rules that are equal and fair based on performance, while calling for decisions to be made on "robust evidence." The revised framework also aims to preserve a person's bodily autonomy by discouraging the use of medically-unnecessary treatments or invasive examinations.
WATCH | Balancing fairness and human rights at the Olympics:
Hardie called the new framework, which took effect following the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, "more open and respectful of human rights and bodily autonomy."
The NCAA also recently updated its policy. Before March, NCAA required transgender athletes to undergo a year of testosterone suppression in order to compete. Beginning with the 2022 winter championships, trans athletes were required to document "sport-specific testosterone levels" four weeks before their championship.
Experts say there are takeaways from sports that categorize athletes using weight classes or handicaps, such as in golf, to determine who competes against who.
Though she doesn't believe it's time for a unilateral move to gender-neutral sporting, Donnelly believes more can be done to include trans athletes.
"We show a distinct lack of imagination when we claim that we can't imagine any other way of organizing support that could be fair or could be meaningful to the participants."
Written by Jason Vermes. Interview with Parker Molloy produced by Laurie Allan.
