Transwoman swimmer Anne Coombs in the news again

[Nameychangington]

Anyone remember Anne? He got cross because a hotel gave him the key to a single changing room rather than the women's, when he wanted a swim. Then was found to be using the women's changing rooms, where girls were changing for a swimming competition, as a short cut to the pool while a judge at the competition.

Well now he's cross at not being allowed to swim in a women's swimming competition, so is swimming in the Open competition topless. Erm, like all the other men.

https://www.readingchronicle.co.uk/news/25241452.reading-woman-swims-topless-protest-swim-england/

Yes, in 2023 he did. The woman who beat him is a phenomenal swimmer, is breaking world records, European records etc every new age group she gets to. Was Olympic level in her youth.
the women he beat are also awesome swimmers, not quite Helen’s standard, but definitely those who you would think ‘wow’ if you saw at your local pool!
the women who are the same ‘level’ as him, recreational, wouldn’t have made the qualifying times.

I think the issue is that Anne was asked specifically to wear a female swimming costume while racing in the male race. They advised Anne could be disqualified for wearing male swimwear (topless) but the argument is simple. If this person is a man in the men’s race he can therefore wear the designated men’s swimming attire. If they are forcing Anne to wear the female costuming on threat of disqualification then what are they saying exactly?

Then it is discriminatory? If it is an Open Race (ie men or women can compete, and it is expressly trans inclusive), then apparel should be according to competitor preference? If he is competing as a trans woman in a mixed biological sex category, then he should be able to wear a bodied swimming costume?

I do think he is a bit of a dick but in this instance,given fellow competitors will be wearing trunks or costumes, and all are considered equal according to weight/age class etc, then they should let him wear a costume - and not to allow him to do so may actually be discriminatory according to the law? (I assume he has a GRC, so is protected under that?)

I may have that wrong? TBH I want him to be able to compete freely without obstacles in the Open category as it will keep him out of the women's. I could care less what he wears…

Presumably they're struggling with the incoherent / unreasonable / jumping through hoops demands that transactivists expect from sport (and society). There are evidently rules about swimwear - not sure what the basis is for saying men can't wear swimming costumes like women but presume there's a "reason"?

Seems to me this is FAFO (Fuck Around and Find Out ) territory for Coombes.

Slow news day in Reading?

I can't claim to know anything about the rules re swimming competitions, but if the rules say a man can't wear an all over body costume then the rules for men will have to change to accommodate the men who claim they're women.

It seems like a Men problem to me, so the men can sort this one out for themselves because it's not the job of women to sort out all men's problems for them.

"Masters swimming is usually very inclusive," she said. "They do try and let anyone compete. I came second in that race.

"The woman who came first was a whole length ahead of me. She broke the European record; she's an excellent swimmer.
"I'm trying to emphasise that this is not a trans person coming in and nicking places from other people."

Oh do fuck off mate. Just because you didn't win doesn't mean you weren't nicking places from other people. You, a man, came second, in a woman's race, for fucks sake, so yes you did nick a place from a woman.

He looks so familiar. I think I know him somehow.

FINA swimwear rules are about avoiding technical advantages from suits rather suitable outfits by sex. FINA have some more catching up to do it seems.
On the plus side the rules as they stand are my go to case study on trans teens in sport. In no world would we let the teen FtM swimmers go topless.

I agree.

It does feel like discrimination on the grounds of gender reassignment to not let a trans woman wear a top in an open category. It absolutely will discourage many TIMs from competing and it will support the 'most disadvantaged' line.

The aim (or my aim as soon me one who considered them self GC) is to keep the womens category female. End.

The aim is not to deter trans people from competing in sport, not even the entitled ones.

The comparator for gender reassignment discrimination is someone off the same sex without the PC of GR which in this case is a man. As Anne hasn't been treated differently to the other men I don't think he would be a able to claim direct discrimination but he may be able to claim indirect discrimination

rank.

It was the open race I believe. Not male.

They spelled man wrong. He is a man who is transgender.
A woman who is transgender is a transman.

Hoping he isn’t at nationals again next month.

For those wanting the world's tiniest violin it's here - although I feel a bit conned because it's not actually playable, it's just a tiny picture of a violin.
Maybe it identifies as a violin.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp92pr5pr48o

Oh to have the laughing emoji back

He is a biological male, so should wear male swimming attire regardless of his chest.

As he believes himself a woman, his usual swimming attire is female. He has been advised to wear female swimwear whilst competing in the open category, but he feels this would out him as a transwoman(!), so he protested by wearing men’s jammers. The referee could in theory then disqualify him from competing as swimsuits should be ‘in good moral taste’, but I get the impression this didn’t actually happen. I think Anne wanted the ref to disqualify him from the race so he could then kick off and say ‘they won’t let me compete in any races at all, discrimination, waaah!’ Again, there is nothing in the article stating this actually happened so I assume he went ahead and raced in his jammers. The article title is ‘Reading woman swims topless in protest against Swim England’ rather than ‘Reading woman banned from swim race’, so the best he has managed (from his point of view) is to get a naive or captured journalist in a crap paper to publish his whinging.

It's the wearing of a women's swimming costume while swimming in the Open race that Anne thinks would out Anne as a transwoman. Whereas he thinks that swimming topless in the Open race would ... make people think he's a woman? Because that makes sense Literally no one is going to see that pic of Anne in a swimming hat and jammers and think 'oooh a topless woman'. It's clearly a male body.

MassiveWordSalad is 100% right, he wanted to get disqualified so he could claim transphobia. That didn't work so he had to go to the 'news'paper.

As he believes himself a woman, his usual swimming attire is female. He has been advised to wear female swimwear whilst competing in the open category, but he feels this would out him as a transwoman(!), so he protested by wearing men’s jammers

Thanks for clarifying @MassiveWordSalad - I'm glad the opportunity was there for whoever to wear whatever which removes perceived blockers/excuses to participation.

These topless protests backfire IMO. The hips don't lie & paired with jammers or black trackie bottoms the protestors look more male than ever.

But two summers ago, when challenged about the unnecessary use of the girls’ changing room and the hotel incident, he said he was totally a woman. So somewhere between then and now he’s lying. And the mens’ open water race suits are full body too - not much different to the female suit.