What is "Fairness" in Sports? ～ Transgender Participation in Sports ～

Suppose you participate in a 100-meter race.
"Ready. Set. Go!” You run as fast as possible but goaled in second place.
First place was a runner wearing prosthetic leg. 
Do you feel this is unfair?

In the past, when prosthetic athletes were slower than able-bodied athletes, they were the object of praise, but as soon as they became faster than able-bodied athletes, they were pointed out as unfair. But if wearing braces is considered unfair, then why are prosthetic legs not allowed and contact lenses are OK?

It was recently announced that Laurel Hubbard (New Zealand), a transgender woman on the weightlifting team, has been selected to compete in the Tokyo 2020 Games.
"It is unfair for a former man to compete in a women's game.”
There was lots of controversy, both for and against the decision.

The issue was treated as if suddenly a big problem appeared, but this is not a special problem. It is one of many issues existing in the sports world as mentioned above.

I am often asked for my opinion on this matter, so I will try to summarize my thoughts here from several perspectives on how I see the issue. It's a very difficult discussion, and it's not something that I can give you a clear-cut answer to, but I would like to give you an opportunity to think about "fairness in sports and society" from various angles.

How should we balance between respect for human rights and fairness in competition?

First of all, as a transgender and a former athlete, I am very happy to see that transgender people are now guaranteed to compete at sports events. When I was an athlete, there was not enough information about LGBTQ and sports, and I thought it would be impossible for me to continue playing sports as a transgender person. There is no life as a female athlete if you want to be yourself (be a man). On the other hand, if I prioritized my athletic life, I could not be myself. To be honest, I never really thought about balancing "being myself" with "life as a athlete.” Some people point out to me, "You're a transgender man and you've participated in women's game!” But I was competing before transition, when I was not taking any male hormones, and I had no choice where to compete.
(Top photo was taken in Jakarta when I was 15 years old, the first time I represented the junior national team and finished second in the Asian Games)

The initial point that I would like to make in this discussion is that both the Olympic Charter, which is known as the constitution of the sports world, and the Basic Law on Sports enshrine "prohibition of all forms of discrimination" and "ensuring that all people have the opportunity to practice sports. When I say "all people," it means "all people.” Based on this premise, there should be no exclusion of certain groups of people from the world of sports.

However, there will be criticisms such as, "It's unfair that a former male athlete is now competing as a female athlete!” It is obvious that the rights of cis-gender women (people whose gender identity matches the gender assigned at birth) need to be protected as well as the rights of transgender women. We also need to consider some concerns such as they might get injured. However, "protecting the rights of transgender women deprives the rights of cis-gender women" is often spoken as if two rights are conflicting, but the fact is not so simple.
In order to ensure both respect for human rights and fairness in competition, over the past two decades, sports organizations have been working to develop reasonable rules based on scientific evidence. Currently, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has established regulations based on testosterone levels.

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Consensus Meeting on Sex Reassignment and Hyperandrogenism 2015

A. Those who transition from female to male are eligible to compete in the male category without restriction;
B. Those who transition from male to female are eligible to compete in the female category under the following conditions:

① The athlete has declared that her gender identity is female. The declaration cannot be changed, for sporting purposes, for a minimum of four years.
② The athlete must demonstrate that her total testosterone level in serum has been below 10nmol/L for at least 12 months prior to her first competition (with the requirement for any longer period to be based on a confidential, case-by-case evaluation, considering whether or not 12 months is a sufficient length of time to minimise any advantage in women’s competition.
③The athlete’s total testosterone level in serum must remain below 10nmol/L throughout the period of desired eligibility to compete in the female category.
④ Compliance with these conditions may be monitored by testing. In the event of non-compliance, the athlete’s eligibility for female competition will be suspended for 12 months.

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The current rules set by the IOC, as mentioned above, are not the result of quick discussions, but are the today’s best standards adopted after much deliberation on how to balance respect for human rights and fairness in competition. As you can see, it is important to emphasize that just declaring yourself as a woman is not enough to participate in women's competitions; there are certain rules that must be followed.

In some cases, these rules may need to be updated. We need to have constructive discussions on how to create standards that could establish rules that are more reasonable and accepted by a larger number of people in the future.

It is important to note, however, that even if there are objections to the IOC rules, there should be no personal attacks on the transgender women competing in the games. It is nonsense to throw words like "unfair" and "coward" at an athlete who has trained hard and decided to compete according to the current rules.

Some people are concerned that male athletes may temporarily pretend to be female in order to win medals, which could lead to fraud. However, as per the IOC rules (1) and (2), it is impossible to change your gender identity for at least four years after you declare that you are a woman.

Starting tomorrow, would you be able to live pretending to be the opposite sex from the one you used to live, for 24 hours a day for 4 years, just for the possibility of getting some status and honor? Just a little imagination will tell you that this is unrealistic. Gender identity is not something that can be easily changed or altered.

The difficulty in living under a false gender is the reason why many transgender people suffer so much. It is not easy to regain one's true identity facing various slanders and conflicts within the society. We could see that Hubbard is an athlete who has overcome such difficulties to compete in the Olympics.

What is Fairness in Sports?

So, where exactly is fairness within the realm of sport?
The world of sport is an inherently unfair one, regardless of the nuances regarding gender.

Is it fair for athletes who train at new, state-of-the-art facilities to compete against athletes from poorer countries who do not even have a suitable training environment in the first place? While there are various weight categories, such categories for height do not exist. Furthermore, if a 2-meter-tall woman actively engages in a basketball game, would her height be considered a “gift” or an “act of cheating”?

While there is often no criticism that demean athletes as “manipulative” for their naturally tall height, there is often criticism directed towards other born physical characteristics – take Caster Semenya of South Africa for example. Female athletes who are naturally born with high testosterone levels are often unable to compete in competitions without treatment that lowers hormone levels. Is this really fair?

Moreover, there are considerable physical differences between athletes of different backgrounds. When I first competed in a world fencing tournament in Germany, I faced a female athlete from Poland who was close to 190cm tall – and I was completely defeated by her. （My height is 162 cm...）To be honest, at the time I thought to myself, “What a sly move! You shouldn’t be allowed to win!”

Some men are small and some women are large. We live in a world where athletes engage in rigorous training so they can make full use of their advantages and handicaps, physical and mental backgrounds to compete on the world stage.

“However, that being said, testosterone is still a special case. It’s especially clear when you look at the doping issue.” While such criticism continues to arise, we can use Hubbard, a professional athlete ranked 7th in the world, as an example – her rank as 7th presupposes that she has at least six female cis-gender athletes who are stronger than her. If you perceive the issue through this lens, you may not be able to simplify the problem down to merely testosterone levels.

While men and women have long competed separately due to differences between physical sexuality and abilities, athletes do not compete under race or age categories for that same reason. In fundamental terms, sport was conceived as an activity aimed at developing strong, male leaders – as a result, rules that distinguish between superiority and inferiority in sports are often male centered and focus on those who are the “strongest, fastest, highest and most distant”. If such criteria for sporting events changed to be more flexible, expressive and supple, it is likely that sporting competitions will not only be divided between male and female categories, but will also encourage new discussion and evaluation.
Furthermore, we also need to consider the validity of the “fair” rules of sport in which both men and women compete together, such as horseback riding.

In addition, categories for women's sports were created to cater towards the physical differences between physical ability, alongside guaranteeing the opportunity for women to play sports within a male-dominated world. Considering these background factors of women participation in sport, it is necessary for us to secure opportunities for transgender players – not simply within the conventional framework of “men and women”, but a revitalization of the framework itself.

I would also like to point out that while the rules regarding the physical advantages of people are incredibly stringent, the disadvantages of people are not considered on an equal playing field. This is clear from the tremendous criticism of transgender women’s players, in stark contrast to the management of the disadvantages transgender men face.

If we are aiming to achieve “true fairness”, is it fair for society to criticize solely on the physical advantages of transgender people, rather than the disadvantages. It’s definitely an issue that warrants serious consideration.

The Inseparable Relationship Between Society and Sport

Let’s take a broader perspective and look beyond the societal boundaries of sport. I strongly believe that if society considers transgender women participation in sporting competitions unfair, the public should consider the societal prejudices and struggles transgender women face in their daily lives. Please carefully consider my argument.
Since transgender women are bound by the forces of intersectionality as a “double minority” of being transgender and female, many transgender women face various difficulties in their lives – they are often denied by family members, the victims of bullying at school, unfairly evaluated at job interviews etc... Of course, this does not apply to all transgender women as this social phenomenon varies country by country. Yet even so, the number of hate crimes against transgender women is by far the highest worldwide.
What alarms me most is that a biased subject like this may further contribute towards the prejudice against transgender women. I want you to understand the unfair nature of this argument, before you cherry-pick certain aspects of the issue and proclaim that the entire system is “unfair”.
Some people argue, “I’m talking about fairness in competitions, so don’t make the conversation a political one!” While they may argue so, sports and societal issues are inextricably intertwined, and thus it is impossible to discuss such problems in a completely separate manner.

Just like a child who becomes popular due to their athletic talents, being skillful in sport leads people to be highly acclaimed in society. If you can play sport, you can get into a good school, which leads to a good job. If you become a professional player, you will gain societal honor and status. Of course, while this is not a pathway for everyone who plays sport, all individuals should have that equal opportunity to reach that starting line
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LGBTQ Have No Place in the World of Sport

In fact, there have been news articles that have reported that transgender women’s participation in sport is banned in several states in the United States. The reasoning behind this prohibition revolved around depriving cis-gender women from playing an active role in sport – however, if transgender women are eliminated from the equation, transgender women are the ones who lose the opportunity to play an active role in sport. What do you think about this unjust and prejudiced system?

Some say that trans-female players are not in a suitable state for winning medals – truth be told, if a transgender high school student wins a race, a few days later, a cis-gender high school student is crowned the top prize. Ignoring this situation and deciding the rights of minorities through a majority vote is dangerous, discriminatory and violent.

In this sense, many transgender people are not even allowed the opportunity to reach the starting line due to their identity and attributes - being excluded from the world of sport is essentially equivalent to being excluded from society.

Not only does this apply to transgender communities, this sad reality is ever so present for LGBTQ children who are excluded from the world of sport, early in their careers. Data and statistics reveal that the top three places where LGBTQ children are not favorably received were changing rooms, gymnasiums and club activities – all of which are related to sports. It is very difficult for LGBTQ children to envision a future in Japan, as active LGBTQ adults in society are hardly visible in the public eye. Therefore, it is integral for LGBTQ athletes to play an active role in the world of sport and inspire the dreams and hopes of worried children.

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Sports and Gender

One last thing before the end of my long post.
I would also like to note that my argument may potentially lead to social change that free women from male-dominated sports.
“Your brother should play soccer! You’re a girl – go play the piano instead of sports.”
Through this sense, women have been excluded from the world of sport in the long-term. Even though she’s a woman, she’s playing soccer or rugby. Nowadays, the number of female athletes who are active in various sports have gradually increased.

Laurel Hubbard, a transgender woman who used to compete as a man, continues to compete in sporting competitions even after his transition from a male to a female. While she wants to live freely as a woman, she is also enthusiastic for muscle training – an activity often deemed a masculine one. Fazed by these gender stereotypes, she has defamed herself for not being “feminine” enough, but she continues to give her all to achieve her personal best. Isn’t this evidence that she is attracted to the sport itself, beyond the societal boundaries of men and women?
Hubbard challenging the societal perception of “femininity” through her appearance may help to free women from the stereotypical view that “all women should be like this.”

A Society Where Anyone Can Enjoy Sport?

Finally, I would like to return to the original question once again.
What can we do to ensure that everyone can compete fairly without discrimination, as outlined in the Basic Sports Law and the Olympic Charter?
Perhaps it may be an unanswerable question. Perspectives can be very different depending on one’s position to the phenomenon. The more you think about it, the more likely one will enter a maze of conflicting views; however, we will not escape this difficult problem, hold constructive discussions and strive towards a better society. Awarding medals for physical superiority should not be the only purpose of sports.It may be possible because of the timing of the Olympics.

The Olympic Movement aims for a society, world and future where everyone can relish the joy of sports through their own pleasure, without being excluded or left behind. What can we do now so that “diversity and harmony”, one of the basic concepts in the Tokyo 2020 Games, are not left as meaningless words to action?

Through the discussions I have with you all, I hope to take one step in the right direction. From this moment onwards, let us connect ourselves to a better future and society.

Please let me know what you think.

Fumino Sugiyama
Executive Board member Japan Fencing Federation
Executive Board member Japan Olympic Committee
Co-chair NPO Tokyo Rainbow Pride