Some good news for Women's Fencing!

[marksandfencers]

I previously posted asking members to help with responding to British Fencing's consultation. You may remember the consultation was quite OTT in its signposting to various trans charities for those who may be distressed filling it out!

However, common sense seems to have prevailed, and I'm pleased to see that the female category at British Fencing events will remain FEMALE!

You can read the very clear new guidelines here: https://www.britishfencing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Gender-Policies-for-Licensed-Events-Approved-18.09.2024.pdf

In short, there is a Female category (only for people who are female sex at birth and have not started female to male hormone treatment) and a Mixed category (for Transgender (and all other individuals including those eligible to compete in the Female category)). The same applies to the GB selection process for international competitions.

Unfortunately, the international board remains captured, hence the recent scenes where a US man recently cheated his way to victory over Britain's Jane Clayton in the veteran women's category, so there is still some work to be done there.

Great news, well done for pursuing the matter so successfully.

I was feeling a bit 'hmmmm... maybe it's not all that great' as I read through the definitions of gender , cis gender etc in the BF Policy Document and then bang!

The science illustrating the physiological, biological and subsequent sporting performance advantages that adults of the male sex have over adults of the female sex (as an example due to the effects of testosterone during male puberty) is unequivocal.
In addition, the scientific community broadly agrees that the majority of the physiological/biological advantages brought about by male puberty are retained (either wholly or partially) by transwomen
post transition.

Way to go, British Fencing, this disproves the old claim that the penis mightier than the sword. ...
I'll get my coat....😂

Oh well done! No messing around with that statement, is there?

Well done British Fencing 👏

Oh this is rather good news, thank you Op.

👍

This is good news, thanks for sharing. And a great unequivocal statement!

Yay for common sense and fair play
😁

Excellent news. But so painful to see these foolish organisations being dragged back to reality, fairness and including women in their own sport.

Hoping now for a gradual spreading of realism.
Other governing bodies must follow suit to protect women.

It’s good news, though utterly ridiculous it came up at all. Fencing is a sport where the advantages of reach and thrust so obviously benefit men, and are so obviously not going to be significantly diminished by any transition (or at all in the case of reach) that it’s insane that anyone ever thought it was acceptable.

Great news

and its a shame we are saying its good news….its so obvious that it shouldn’t be news at all 😀

but very well done to all those who worked to make this possible

Excellent to see that the substantive result is a good one, but I'd be interested to know why some of the other language is "captured" - so "cis", "assigned at birth" etc. Perhaps there was a difference of opinion and this was a compromise!

Yes, there has definitely been some OTT coddling for those of the other persuasion.

Unfortunately, this includes non-licensed recreational events, for which British Fencing "encourages" those with special identities to enter the category they're most comfortable with...

marksandfencers

Yes, big eye roll from me when I read about the non licensed recreational events - and indeed club activities, though at least it doesn’t generally have as much as an impact there.