Sport • Page 2
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‘Allowing trans athletes to compete as women is a throwback to the dark ages of misogyny’
Anonymous authors for The Telegraph
Three female sports competitors open up on how they really feel competing against trans women - and the fear of abuse that kept them quiet. -
Campaigners reveal in new poll majority of Britons want trans ban in female spaces
Sarah O’Grady, Social Affairs Editor for the Daily Express
Feature on Sex Matters’ poll results, released on 5th June 2023. -
Less than third of Britons want transwomen allowed in female-only spaces
James Beal, Social Affairs Editor for The Times
Feature on Sex Matters’ poll results, released on 5th June 2023. -
Fewer than a third of Brits think trans women should be allowed to use female changing rooms and three-quarters want them excluded from women’s sport
Ryan Hooper for the Daily Mail
Feature on Sex Matters’ poll results, released on 5th June 2023. -
Less than a third of Brits say transwomen should be allowed in female-only spaces and sports
Sex Matters has today released the findings from a representative national poll. It finds that less than one in three Britons believe that transwomen – men who identify as women – should be allowed in women’s sports, changing rooms and toilets, or to provide ‘female-only’ intimate care. The lack...
5th June 2023
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Sex Matters poll results as graphics (for printing)
A six-page graphical summary of the figures from our poll: a nationally representative sample of over-18s, polled online on 15th May 2023 by PeoplePolling. Optimised for printing.
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Sex Matters poll results as graphics (for screen)
A six-page graphical summary of the figures from our poll: a nationally representative sample of over-18s, polled online on 15th May 2023 by PeoplePolling.
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British Cycling excludes trans-identified males from competitive female cycling
In April 2022, British Cycling made global news when it revoked eligibility for Emily Bridges, a Welsh trans-identified male cyclist, who was poised to make his debut in the female category. This would have been in a major-track cycling event, against one of Britain’s most decorated cyclists, Dame Laura...
26th May 2023
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Parkrun ‘self-ID’ lets biological male runners ‘smash women’s records’, Olympian claims
Catherine Lough for The Telegraph
An article prompted by what Mara Yamauchi, a member of Sex Matters' advisory group, has written. -
Response to Victor Madrigal-Borloz’s report on the UK
The UN Independent Expert Victor Madrigal-Borloz has issued an extraordinary report at the end of his ten-day mission to the UK. The thrust of it is the familiar claim that speaking clearly about the material reality of the two sexes amounts to “hate”, alongside the equally familiar dismissal of...
12th May 2023
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Answers to questions on sex, gender, biology and identity
Sex Matters has written a set of frequently asked questions which seeks to provide answers in everyday language about the material reality of sex, and the idea of gender identity. The aim is to provide clear starting points for debate and discussion, for anyone trying to understand the competing...
28th April 2023
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London Marathon has tied itself in knots by trying to be ‘inclusive’ in trans row
Oliver Brown, Chief Sports Writer, for The Telegraph
Olympian Mara Yamauchi, a member of Sex Matters’ advisory group, is quoted and given credit for drawing attention to the unfairness of the Frank case. -
The non-binary category in marathons
Mara Yamauchi is the UK’s third-fastest female marathon runner ever and a two-time Olympian. She is a member of Sex Matters’ advisory group and has written this guest blog. Since 31st March, post-puberty males have been banned from the female category by World Athletics – in world rankings competitions...
26th April 2023
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Transgender athlete apologises for running London Marathon as female before transitioning
Oliver Brown, Chief Sports Writer, for The Telegraph
Frank’s apology comes in response to scathing comments from Mara Yamauchi, the third fastest British female marathon runner in history. -
Trans runner beat 14K women in London Marathon after running NYC as a man
Lee Brown for the New York Post
A two-time Olympian has ripped rules that allowed a transgender runner to beat nearly 14,000 women in the female category of the London Marathon.
The article quotes extensively from tweets made by Mara Yamauchi, a member of Sex Matters’ advisory group. -
Trans athlete running as a female in London Marathon labelled ‘wrong and unfair’
Oliver Brown, Chief Sports Writer, for The Telegraph
Olympian Mara Yamauchi, a member of Sex Matters’ advisory group, is quoted at length. -
Should Transwomen be allowed to Compete in Women’s Sports? A view from an Exercise Physiologist
By Gregory A. Brown Ph.D., Professor of Exercise Science, Physical Activity and Wellness Laboratory, Department of Kinesiology and Sport Sciences, University of Nebraska Kearney, and Tommy Lundberg Ph.D., Assistant Senior Lecturer, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Division of Clinical Physiology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, SWE
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Should transwomen be allowed to compete in women’s sports?
A view from an Exercise Physiologist
Gregory A. Brown Ph.D., Professor of Exercise Science, Physical Activity and Wellness Laboratory, Department of Kinesiology and Sport Sciences, University of Nebraska Kearney,
Tommy Lundberg Ph.D., Assistant Senior Lecturer, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Division of Clinical Physiology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, SWE -
EHRC publishes letter on clarifying sex in the Equality Act
Sex Matters’ press statement Sex Matters welcomes the letter from Kishwer Falkner, Chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, to Kemi Badenoch, the Minister for Women and Equalities, responding to her request for advice on clarifying the definition of the protected characteristic of sex in the Equality Act...
4th April 2023
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EDI contra science – the misuse of “ethics” in academic research
John Armstrong writes for The Crtitic about how he was asked to survey elite athletes on their views on trans participation in athletics, but the ethics committee at King’s College, London rejected his research proposal on the grounds that the terms “male” and “female” were unacceptable.
1st April 2023
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Fairness matters in sport
Philosopher Dr Jon Pike has written a guest blog post for Sex Matters, based on his recent article published in the Journal of the Philosophy of Sport: ‘Why “Meaningful Competition” is not fair competition’. In that article, he sets out case for a two-category model for sport, female and...
24th March 2023
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Why ‘Meaningful Competition’ is not fair competition
Jon Pike discusses a new conception in the context of the debate over the inclusion of transwomen in female sport: ‘Meaningful Competition’, arguing that it is is not fair; that it is an attempt to substitute for the perfectly serviceable concept of fair competition, and an attempt at conceptual...
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How UK Athletics was misled
UK Athletics has put out a statement saying – with regret – that it cannot lawfully exclude trans-identifying men who have GRCs from participation in women’s events. The material part of the statement says: “10. There is a duty in s.9(1) of the Gender Recognition Act 2004 to treat...
3rd February 2023
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UK Athletics claims law change needed to ban trans women from female events
Sean Ingle for The Guardian
Sex Matters is quoted.
UKA wants to have female-born and open categories; Ian Beattie says equality laws prevent change at present -
Why are lawyers giving faulty advice about women-only sports?
The governing body for the sport of athletics in the United Kingdom, UK Athletics, has called for the government to amend the Equality Act in order to guarantee the legality of female-only sports. While Sex Matters agrees with UKA that female-only sports are essential to provide safe and fair...
3rd February 2023
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Three of four transwomen athletes drop out of IOC study
Martyn Ziegler & Craig Lord for The Times
Sex Matters’ Emma Hilton is quoted.
Three of the four elite transwomen athletes who were taking part in a research study led by Joanna Harper of the University of Loughborough and funded by the IOC have dropped out of the programme. -
Fair Play For Women
Campaigning and consultancy group which raises awareness, provides evidence and analysis, and supports policy-makers to protect the rights of women and girls in the UK. Opposes sex self-ID, and also played a large part in the government’s decision to abandon plans to introduce it in England and Wales in...
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A progress report on the fight to restore fairness in female sport
In the past year Fair Play For Women have met with more than fifty sport governing bodies, mostly in the UK, plus a few world federations, about their transgender inclusion policies.
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Risks in the final rush to legislate self-ID in Scotland
The Scottish government’s plans to allow anyone from age 16 upwards who is ordinarily resident in Scotland to obtain a gender recognition certificate (GRC) without any medical assessment are due to be voted on by the Scottish Parliament tomorrow, 21st December. The vote comes barely a week after the...
20th December 2022
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Clarify the Equality Act: sign the petition
The Equality Act 2010 protects everyone’s rights and covers everything from schools to hospitals, pubs to sports, and everybody’s workplace. It includes protection against sex-discrimination, and allows single-sex services. But on 13th December a judge in Scotland pronounced that Equality Act does not recognise biological sex as a protected...
16th December 2022
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Why Sex Matters is calling for clarification of the Equality Act 2010 – a briefing
Sex Matters has launched a petition calling on the government to clarify that in the Equality Act 2010, “sex” means biological sex, and is not modified by the Gender Recognition Act 2004. This would protect the rights of people of both sexes, as well as people who identify as...
