Transgender and Intersex Athletes and the Women’s Category in Sport

Abstract

ABSTRACT Issues surrounding the inclusion of transgender and intersex athletes in the women’s category in sport have spurred vigorous, and sometimes vicious, debate. The loudest voices on one edge of the debate warn that allowing transgender and intersex athletes to participate in women’s sport will push women out of sport entirely as it is equivalent to having men compete against women, while the other edge dismisses as a transphobic/racist/bigot anyone advocating for less than full and unconditional inclusion. Between the edges are more nuanced positions, offering arguments to support conclusions regarding competition, fairness, equality, and inclusion. This paper is an attempt to discover and elucidate the foundational commitments underlying the most common arguments, evaluate the arguments, and consider implications of the commitments.