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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Sport again - Paralympics

37 replies

andyoldlabour · 28/05/2021 15:28

It would appear that Valentina Petrillo, the Italian transgender sprinter is eyeing up some medals at the European Paralympic Championships starting 1st June. Petrillo won 11 National men's titles between 2016 and 2018. The Tokyo Paralympics start on 24th August, so I wonder if Petrillo has qualified for those events?

www.womenarehuman.com/first-male-athlete-with-male-documents-to-compete-in-womens-sports-category-at-national-level/?fbclid=IwAR0L86422AE3M0bpZEigJ7-BBaiy4dM8mW64-MrTOnWXRD3KbN85DxzdglE

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andyoldlabour · 29/05/2021 10:11

334bu

"As a Paralympian where fairness is ensured by a very complex series of categories and handicaps, it is especially appalling that a competitor should ignore the advantage a male body gives them and denigrate their opponents because they don't have this physical advantage."

Well said. I think this post highlights the absolutely ridiculous situation we have arrived at.

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334bu · 29/05/2021 07:19

Needle? Needless to say,...

334bu · 29/05/2021 07:18

Yes testosterone reduction is necessary in Paralympics . However as for the Olympics, it is reduced to a level almost 5 times higher than the average level in a female body . Moreover, all the so called "research" comparing performance difference consists of a study of a handful of trans athletes who self identified a drop in performance after taking cross sex hormones and also compared performances recorded many years apart. Needle no consideration was ever taken into whether this drop in performance was anything like the difference between male and female athletes' performances. All subsequent research has proven little or no real difference in athletic performance after lowering testosterone . The advantage of having a male body therefore aallows,in this case a 47 year old veteran athlete to beat young female athletes who are at the very peak of their athletic careers. Yeah for inclusivity! Sorry girls you're just not good enough!

guinnessguzzler · 29/05/2021 06:52

I have sometimes wondered whether the way it will go in sport is to move to a system much more like the Paralympics. From what I understand it, there are different classes and, as described upthread, quite strict approaches to who is in which class based on medical and functional assessment. If there are no longer meaningful sex-based categories for sport, perhaps there could be different classes based on eg lung capacity, heart size, muscle mass and so. It would be interesting to see if those in each of these new classes had anything else in common HmmGrin

NiceGerbil · 29/05/2021 04:10

Google tells me the testosterone limit is the same.

Slightly less enraged.

Rage still for sport in general obv.

NiceGerbil · 29/05/2021 04:06

Hold on a minute.

Does the Paralympics not have the same rules as the Olympics?

I mean the Olympic ones are shit. But don't they apply?

Well that shows up in neon writing who the Olympics cares about.

It's all about able bodied men. If it's true there are no requirements.

Delphinium20 · 29/05/2021 00:57

What I don’t get though is why hose two women are smiling at his side.
What is the point of competing if you simply don’t care that a man can rock up and nick the gold off you?

Fear
Adrenaline
Socialization

Also, notice how he's pulling them in...Hmm

Iootraw1 · 29/05/2021 00:36

@StellaAndCrow

The photograph reminds me of a thread pointing out how often articles in favour of trans athletes show them photographed alone. When photographed with their competitors, the difference is so obvious.
Yes indeed it is. What I don’t get though is why hose two women are smiling at his side. What is the point of competing if you simply don’t care that a man can rock up and nick the gold off you?
Iootraw1 · 29/05/2021 00:32

Petrillo clearly enjoys his so called success and beating the other women. An arrogance rather like Rachel McKinnon.

They are pathetic.

Voice0fReason · 28/05/2021 23:00

This makes me so cross.
Why are women so expendable?

I don't understand how anyone can think this is in any way fair!

TrainedByCats · 28/05/2021 22:16

@StellaAndCrow

Wrong photo! This one.
Just came to post that picture. The physical advantage is obvious when side by side. There’s very few pictures of them with female athletes
WeeBisom · 28/05/2021 21:11

Weirdly, you cannot identify as disabled and the Paralympics committee are exceptionally strict about what counts as disabled. I remember a few years ago a woman with conversion syndrome was disqualified from the wheelchair racing because her inability to use her legs was due to a mental illness as opposed to a physical impairment, and that wasn't good enough to count as disabled. Now, it was true...her legs definitely were very well defined and it was probably the case that even if she felt she couldn't walk she was still using the muscles (I think a doctor did a test and said that when she hoisted herself into bed she was still using her leg muscles, even if she wasn't aware of doing this.) But just think of the difference...a woman has an actual diagnosed condition, but because it's psychological her disability doesn't count. She wasn't malingering (as far as anyone can tell) or cheating. And yet you can self identify as a different sex and that's fine.

StellaAndCrow · 28/05/2021 20:59

Wrong photo! This one.

Sport again - Paralympics
334bu · 28/05/2021 20:58

As a Paralympian where fairness is ensured by a very complex series of categories and handicaps, it is especially appalling that a competitor should ignore the advantage a male body gives them and denigrate their opponents because they don't have this physical advantage.

StellaAndCrow · 28/05/2021 20:58

The photograph reminds me of a thread pointing out how often articles in favour of trans athletes show them photographed alone. When photographed with their competitors, the difference is so obvious.

GCAutist · 28/05/2021 20:44

So they think it’s ok to boast about having no competition or rivals in Paralympic women’s sport but that it’s ok because disabled women are more accepting… or are we just used to be trampled over, spoken at and for and silenced in every element of our existence and find it futile speaking out anymore?

I can’t believe the arrogance. Wants to compete despite having no competition. Will do it anyway because no one has the guts to complain anymore and that’s mistaken for acceptance?

334bu · 28/05/2021 20:41

Layshia Clarendon is non binary but born female. Has posted pictures of '' top ' surgery

334bu · 28/05/2021 20:36

Sorry Aaron crosspost

EyesOpening · 28/05/2021 20:35

I couldn’t follow the piece about LC who has interchangeable pronouns, I wasn’t sure if the writer meant LC or LC plus the organisation mentioned, when it changed from she/her to they/them/their. I gave up after the second attempt.

334bu · 28/05/2021 20:35

Quinn is non binary in gender identity but is a member of the female sex class so no conflict of rights.

AaronStampler · 28/05/2021 18:53

Quinn is female, so will not be competing with an unfair advantage.

andyoldlabour · 28/05/2021 18:47

Outsports apparently think that there will be at least nine transgender athletes at the paralympic and olympic games this year.

www.outsports.com/2021/5/12/22428082/trans-olympic-athlete-tokyo-ioc-paralympic

This is one of them, a person named Quinn who currently plays for the Canadian women's football team. Can somone please help me unpick all this, because I don't know who Quinn is, what their natal sex is and it is all very confusing.

www.outsports.com/2020/12/27/22196235/outsports-non-binary-athlete-quinn-transgender-canada-sweden-vittsjo-gik-layshia-clarendon-wnba

They won a silver medal at the 2012 CONCACAF U 17 competition, but I can't see their name in the Canadian squad.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada_women%27s_national_under-17_soccer_team

"They were permitted to continue playing professional women's football because they were assigned female at birth and their biological sex remained female"

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinn_(soccer)

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334bu · 28/05/2021 18:17

Female 100 metre records are equalled by 45 year old men and would be pushed hard by 50 year old record holders, so Valentina's performance at 47 not at all surprising. Moreover there are also no problems with the menopause.

TheWeeDonkey · 28/05/2021 18:13

I'm not particularly sporty but I know growing up sport was a life saver for many of my female friends, I feel so very sorry and angry for young girls growing up now who will miss out on that opportunity.

GnomeOrMistAndIceGuy · 28/05/2021 18:04

Absolutely fucking horrendous.