Sports and gender
The UNESCO international charter on physical education and sport affirms that “the practice physical education and sport is a fundamental right for all.” Gender has been an important category of analysis in the understanding of sports. The concept of gender has in the past been used when determining the inclusion or exclusion of women in sports. These views seek to reflect the biological difference between the two genders claiming that men are inherently strong, aggressive and competitive making them better suited to sports as compared to women. In recent days, the participation of transgender athletes among their gender identities has been widely questioned among various sports organizations and institutions. The thesis of this paper is to answer the question of whether transgender athletes should be allowed to compete against female athletes in sports.
There have been several concerns raised on transgender female individuals’ participation in sports alongside their gender entity (Bal, 2011). Several critics have argued that transgender female individuals have an athletic sporting advantage acquired from the presence of testosterone hormones in their bodies (Jones et al, 2016)This theory argues that transgender females are biological males and they should therefore not be allowed to compete against females. This theory has been falsified by numerous transgender athletes who argue that success in sports is mainly dependent on the individual and not on the presence of the male hormones in their body (Patchett & Foster, 2015). Many sporting organizations have therefore made rules that regulate the participation of transgender females in sports. For instance, the international association of athletic federations (IAAF) announced the requirement for transgender athletes to take androgen blockers to help lower their testosterone levels.
In conclusion, I contend that it is fair for transgender female athletes to compete against their female counterparts in sports. Transgender females have a right to be included in fair sport according to the UNESCO charter.