Sharron Davies questions ‘common sense’ of open category for transgender athletes - ‘Rewarding mediocrity!’
Sharron Davies has called for 'common sense'
GB NEWS / PA
Olympian Sharron Davies has expressed concerns over the introduction of an open category for transgender athletes at the Swimming World Cup.
The new category will see “all sex and gender identities” competing in a “pioneering pilot project” which will include 50m and 100m races across all strokes.
It comes after World Aquatics - formerly known as FINA - voted to restrict transgender athletes from competing in elite women’s aquatics competitions.
The gender inclusion policy came into effect on June 20, 2022, and resulted in male-to-female transgender athletes only being able to compete in the women’s categories if they transition before the age of 12 or before they reach stage two on the puberty Tanner Scale.
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Davies, who competed in three Olympic Games, feels biological males may only choose to compete in the new category to enhance their chances of success.
She told Patrick Christys: “We have this situation which we saw in the Boston Marathon where they offered chances of £5,000 for the non-binary category.
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“You’ve got males who are winning the non-binary category that are slower than 80 people in the men’s category and 20 people in the women’s category.
“You’re rewarding mediocrity, which I don’t understand because at the end of the day, whether you identify as non-binary or not, you’re still male or female.
“I just don’t understand why we’re doing this. Inclusion is saying ‘everyone can compete on a fair platform’, but giving them their own category where they can have their own prize money and medals to actually be not very good, I just don’t understand the common sense.
“Lia Thomas is a great example. She came to swimming and showed everyone what was going on. Here was this very mediocre six-foot-four male athlete who couldn’t break the top 500 in America then trans-identifies for a year and beats three Olympic female silver medalists.”
Lia Thomas became the first transgender woman to win an NCAA swimming title at the Ivy League Penn in 2022Lia Thomas became the first transgender woman to win an NCAA swimming title at the Ivy League Penn in 2022World Aquatics says the new plan is part of their “unwavering commitment to inclusivity”.
A statement added: “Detailed entry requirements and entry times and process information will be available soon.
“For this inaugural event, the emphasis is on gaining further experience for future development and celebrating diversity.”
Sharron Davies pointed out the case study of Lia Thomas, who became the first transgender athlete to win an NCAA Division I title after taking the victory in the women’s 500-yard freestyle event in March 2022.
At the time of her transition in 2019, the NCAA’s policy was that transgender athletes must have one year of hormone replacement therapy to be cleared to compete.
Former Olympic swimmer Davies told GB News that the move from World Aquatics to introduce an open category is symptomatic of a shift in policy within the world of sport on the matter of transgender athletes.
“Gradually every sport is doing the right thing”, she said.
“It was obvious that there is a difference between males and females, that’s why we have those categories.
“We know what the biological difference is, just identifying as the opposite sex doesn’t make you the opposite sex.
“Sport by sport, we are getting it, but it really is like pulling teeth. It has been eight years now.”