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How do we Decide Who Competes in Women's Sport?
Madeleine Pape |
TEDxOshkosh
• November 2021
From a young age, we are taught that separate categories defined on the basis of “biological sex” are necessary to ensure the integrity of sports competition for women and girls. It turns out, however, that drawing a clean line around the female athlete category is far more complex than many of us might presume. From variation in sex-linked traits to the increasing visibility of trans people, sports administrators and advocates of women’s sport are grappling with the reality that neither biology nor social identity map neatly onto binary female/male categories.
In this context, where even science fails to provide us with a straightforward solution, how do we decide who gets to compete as a woman in sport, particularly at the elite level? Expect to come away with more questions than answers: this talk is an invitation to challenge your assumptions and embrace the complexity of sexed bodies, sporting ability, and gender equity.