Trans girl winning every race at primary sports day

[Minibea]

My DD is 8 so in year 3 at primary school. There is a male child who self-identified as a girl from roughly age 6 and has socially transitioned at school. I’ve discussed this with DD along the lines of the importance of being inclusive, respecting someone right to be addressed in the way that they prefer etc but have also been clear with her that this child is biologically male and that you can’t change your sex. All fine.

Yesterday was school sports day. The child in question won every single race again the girls. DD is quite sporty and was up there with a chance of winning in all the races so is disappointed.

I don’t want to be “that” parent with school, nor rock the boat with the parents, but as the kids get older I’m concerned about the message this is sending and also the implications for bathroom arrangements, residential trips etc etc. So I want to ask school to provide/confirm their policy around all of this but what exactly do I need to see/hear? And what “should” the policy be so I can sense check it against what’s actually happening? An idiots guide would be most welcome!

This is insanity. A few years ago I would have clapped along saying Yaay Trans Rights.

Now I'm wide awake and I'd be 'that' parent. What the absolute god damm hell is this.

I don't have a good enough comprehension of law and policy to know what can the school do, what should they do. What should they do to not ever continue this nonsense whilst not hurting or humiliating said child.

I would however be asking this question at the highest level tbh.

You said "At this age I think it’s all equal still."

Maybe you mean "At this age I think it can be equal, based on my 2 observations".

Which no one denies. Of course many girls will be faster than boys. Of course there will be those girls who go on to be elite athletes who are faster than the boys throughout their whole school life.
Does this mean girls and boys should compete together? No, of course not.

@arethereanyleftatall I do see where the majority are coming from but the thing is, people take sports day way too seriously! It's meant to be fun and these are little kids we are talking about. One year at my daughter's school on sports day there was a child with a learning disability running in one of the races and the other children had been briefed to let her win. They did so willingly and it was beautiful to watch. That's actually just kindness. I'm not saying that this child deserved to win, they didn't - but at this age taking part IS more important than winning, and kindness to child who may well be struggling with their identity trumps competitiveness IMO. I can see how it is unfair on the girls but it's just a junior school sports day. Totally different scenario in elite sports....

OP should absolutely complain if she wants to but I'm sure the school are aware of the situation and learning how to handle it. They will be taking advice on the matter and may not have dealt with this situation before.

I don't need to even read the studies. I can't believe people here can't see the damage in this and think it's ok.

The message it sends to the male and to the females alone is significant. If this is ok,then what next for the 8 year old boy and what his parents might demand he is entitled to. Or the school themselves for that matter.

Why would I? I’ve put down what I’ve seen. A few posters put some good answers and some got all ratty.

I don’t have skin in the game. I don’t think after primary it should be mixed. Think the issue is a school is allowing a boy to think he’s a girl.

Are you genuinely arguing that national sporting bodies like England Athletics are wrong? They recognise different ability between the sexes at year 3 & 4 and have different threshold times for awards at those ages.

https://www.englandathletics.org/take-part/children-and-young-people/english-schools-aa-and-awards/

It is 'just' a fun day.

It is 'just' a sports day.

There are ways to run a 'fun' sports day then that doesn't involve solely rewarding children for their athletic ability. If the aim of the day is 'fun'. Don't call it a fucking 'sports' day and give out performance based prizes.

Call it a 'fun' day and only focus on fun and on inclusion. Sending mixed messaging this way is a major part of the issue.

The issue is both. There are poster's declaring that sports should not be segregated anyway . Is this a policy you support? You said: 'My dd is faster than some of the boys in her year and there’s a girl who often wins all the mixed races.'
'At my school the top 3 fastest in my class are 2 boys and one girl. It’s always close."

And it is that a school has sex segregated sports events but allows a male athlete to compete in the female events.

Would you support children of different age groups competing together and rewarding the winner of that event? Why?

Thank you for posting that table.

What I wonder is, how can other boys parents not see that it is unfair?

The transgirl will get a gold medal for results, that any other boy not uttering the magic words "I am a girl" will get a silver medal for.

So it's not only girls missing out but boys too!

“It’s meant to be fun …. So if the trans kid wants to race against the girls, then let him”

Long as the trans kid is having fun, who cares about the girls?

I'd put in a formal compliant. One child's delusion belief could end up putting off a whole year groups of girls from sport with long term consequences. School should not be pandering to this nonsense.

This is actually one of the arguments against the non-binary categories that we are seeing popping up in sports competitions. Well, including allowing male athletes into the female category too.

Because the non-binary categories are almost reliably won by male athletes. Therefore, it rewards poorer performing male athletes where they could be entering a choice of all three categories if they wanted to due to some event's policies. And they could potentially win any category they enter.

Whereas the female athletes by comparison will not be likely to win any event except their own sex class.

This does mean that it is discriminatory directly to female people and it is also discriminatory to other male athletes. Because unless the other male athletes declare a gender identity, they will not be able to have those same opportunities to win.

Be " that parent" . Ask for the policies. It's a legal requirement for them to have one. Good luck !

Haven't RTFT yet, but I wanted to say yyy to team races/events. Not only is it fun but it strikes the right balance between pure competition and co-operating with your friends/classmates. You can mix long jump with egg and spoon, sack race. Such good messages to give kids.
And the final race with first boy and first girl is brilliant. In the concern for less athletic kids it's easy to forget that athletic girls (and boys) need encouragement, too.

OP - another vote from me to encourage you to be that parent. Your daughter will thank you for it.

‘The main thing for the school will be making sure everyone has a good time and participates....so if the trans kid wants to race against the girls then let him....’

yeah, and if the trans kid wants to shower with the girls when he is ten, then let him

and if he wants to shower with the girls when he is sixteen, then let him, because he always has.

🤡

Why would you read studies? I suppose if you were interested in the truth then you’d read them.

And if you’re happy to navigate the world based on your own anecdotes rather than carefully gathered data, that’s your choice. But it puts you in a weak position defending your opinion in a debate.

So glad to see someone highlighting the additional social disadvantages girls face even in primary school. Thank you.

…and this is the thin end of the wedge.

The idea that you “…don’t care that she wants to use a girls name, wears the girls uniform etc.” well you should care. This child is not a girl and never will be. But by formally pandering to an impossible delusion and being ‘respectful’ of it, we are creating a - totally unnecessary - situation where girls and women are shafted in almost every scenario where trans ideology is concerned.

As I said on another thread (which now has over 80 likes) any parent attaching a trans label to a child that young, ought to be subject to a social services intervention. And as far as a primary school is concerned, it publicly unravelled all of its ‘fairness’ and ‘kindness’ values in one fell swoop, not to mention the application of critical thinking. Would we pander to a child who thought it was a saucepan? No we not. This surreal bullshit needs to stop.

Isn't that setting a precedent though? It's one thing losing a shoe and being allowed to enter another race, but being encouraged to believe you are something you aren't is a very different matter. What happens when the trans kid gets older and firmly believes he has every right to race against girls?

More of that automatic sexism.

It's just like the one that goes:

Trans identified men might possibly be harassed or worse if they use men's single sex spaces - this is terrible! It should never happen!

Women have been repeatedly harassed, injured, assaulted and raped by trans identified men in women's single sex spaces - but how badly really? Prove it's badly raped, injured and assaulted enough to consider possibly permitting female people men-free spaces.

Yes exactly. Like poor boy, winning all the races and being resented by those horrible bullying girls with bitter feelings and resentful thoughts in their heads…how dare they not let him win everything in the girls’ race and even question his right to it. Girls must know their place and make sure boys have all the space and freedom to express their true and real ‘girlyness’. Which is based purely on their own 6-year-old definition, but completely true and accurate in every sense.

🙄

A child with a learning disability is obviously at a disadvantage. A male child competing against female children is not. In fact, he very likely has a strong advantage.
I do think a child who is eight and is confused about their sex/gender identity needs support. But I don't think this should take the form of letting them compete against the opposite sex.

Yes, elite female athletes famously spring from nowhere at age 18 with no background in competitive sport or interest sparked and sustained by finding they are really good at it, and able to win, from a young age.

So anything outside of elite sport doesn't matter.

This is, precisely, what all the 'just' posts really mean.

'just about having fun' - which in effect means, little girls, learn now, the boys are here to compete and be ambitious and achieve. You're here for the smiling and participation awards, and making sure everyone else has a nice time.

Now lie to the nice man that there's no such thing as biological sex. He's a man, he has the power to make you do it.

Apparently so.

It is just a ‘little’ advantage that the boys have, not worth prioritising you girls

It is just ‘a few’ boys who won, at this age you are all the same level so don’t worry, you just are not that good.

But look, that girl beat all those boys, you are just not that good if you can’t beat the boys in your age group/class or event.

What do you mean you had to work harder to win than those boys? That is life, just accept it and move on! I don’t care what the studies say.

A girl can beat a boy in my school, so therefore that must be the norm!

It is all just a bit of fun! It doesn’t matter that the school ran races and rewarded winners! It is fun! You participated, just enjoy that experience. It doesn’t matter that boys beat you, at this age there is not ‘that’ much difference, or no difference at all! After all, that other girl won. It is just a fun event!