Women’s sports has been under attack by men who identify themselves as female and their woke supporters. Just over a week ago something happened which could be a sign that the tide is turning. World Rugby has ruled that such men are banned from playing women’s rugby at the international level. The Economist explains.
ON OCTOBER 9TH World Rugby, the global governing body for rugby union, announced that it would bar transgender women—people born male, but who identify as women—from playing in the international women’s game. The decision drew condemnation from some quarters and praise from others; England’s rugby authorities have already said they will carry on allowing trans women to play at all other levels of the game within England. It puts World Rugby at odds with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), whose rules allow trans women to compete in women’s Olympic events, and with several other sports that have followed the IOC’s guidance. Trans women competitors have enjoyed success in sports including weightlifting, cycling and athletics. Yet World Rugby’s decision to exclude them was the right one. Other sports should follow its lead.
Absolutely correct.
The first thing they should note is how the decision was made. The debate over transgender rights, especially online, can be extremely bad-tempered and poisonous. World Rugby brought scientists, ethicists, athletes and lawyers together in person, to present calmer arguments directly to the sport’s administrators. Those presentations were made public, in the interests of transparency. And the decision relied, as far as possible, on the evidence.
A transparent decision actually based on science. Of course the “trans women are real women” crowd will find reasons to object.
They should also note what that evidence shows (see article). It came in two strands. One confirmed what everyday experience suggests. Most males are bigger, faster and stronger than most females; some males are bigger, faster or stronger than any female. The second concerned the role of testosterone, the male sex hormone and anabolic steroid that is responsible for much of that sporting advantage. The IOC permits trans women to compete in women’s events only if they suppress the amount of testosterone circulating in their blood.
The evidence presented to World Rugby was not perfect, but it was enough to suggest strongly that this compromise does not work. Suppressing testosterone appears to have only a minor impact on strength—too small to undo the advantages bestowed by male puberty. And no amount of hormone therapy can shrink skeletons. That was enough for World Rugby to decide that the risk posed by trans women to other players in the women’s game would be too great. It has said it is ready to fund more research and will review its decision regularly. But in a risky sport already worried about the long-term impact of common injuries like concussion, its conclusion makes sense […]
Here World Rugby is actually putting the health and safety of real women first, instead of the so-called rights of men confused about their own gender. Rugby is a rough and brutal sport at the best of times. Add players who are much bigger and stronger and you have recipe for serious injuries and even death.
Good on World Rugby for telling fake women where to go. Here’s hoping that other sports where trans women are trying to muscle their way in start doing the same thing.
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