Sport • Page 2
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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...
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Trans rights are human rights!
Sex Matters is a human-rights organisation. We believe that universal human rights form a powerful framework for thinking about how a diversity of freedoms can be respected, while protecting against harm and maintaining an open and prosperous society. It is sometimes argued that those who call for clarity on...
9th November 2022
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Why sex matters for human rights – our organisational framework
Sex Matters’ mission is to promote clarity on sex in law and policy in order to protect everybody’s human rights. This document sets out the key human rights that are relevant, and why and how our work is guided by the promotion of human rights. (Also see our short guide...
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Petition champions
After just three days we were over a quarter of the way to the 100,000 signatures needed to prompt a parliamentary debate. We’ve now got more than 40,000 signatures. Thank you to everyone who has already signed the Make the Equality Act Clear Petition. Every signature helps! If everyone...
5th November 2022
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Women’s Rights Network
Combined grassroots groups of women who oppose sex self-ID. Supports local, in-person networking. Has topic-related groups (such as sports, prisons, schools) that create resources, including videos and podcasts and social-media posts, and coordinate national campaigns. Was a core member of the “Respect My Sex” campaign before the local elections...
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Sex and the law – share our short guide
What does intersex mean? Are you allowed to mention someone’s sex if they don’t want you to? Has someone with a gender recognition certificate changed their sex? Do you have the right to privacy when you’re taking your clothes off? Is it discrimination to keep male people out of...
4th August 2022
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Why do single-sex services matter?
In February 2022 Sex Matters undertook a survey to find out why single-sex services matter to people. The response was astonishing. In a little over a week we received over 7,000 replies, nine out of ten of them from women. Many included details about how the loss of everyday...
19th July 2022
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Groups defending sex-based rights
Overview of groups opposing sex self-ID in the UK, set up by individuals and collectives concerned by the failure of established third-sector organisations to defend women’s sex-based rights, child safeguarding and evidence-based policymaking. Also listed on our website.
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Sex Matters response to “More in Common”
More in Common is an organisation that seeks to “build societies and communities that are “stronger, more united, and more resilient to the increasing threats of polarisation and social division”. Perhaps as a response to this challenge from Maya Forstater, it has applied its approach to the gender wars....
16th June 2022
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Sex Matters in Sport – webinar
Developmental biologist Dr Emma Hilton and sports scientist Dr Ross Tucker in a conversation moderated by Helen Joyce, author of Trans: When Ideology Meets Reality. Hear from two of the scientists who have done most to ensure that policy-makers consider female athletes’ interests as they consider whether to allow...
30th May 2022
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Women’s cycling race saved after campaigns raise public support
UPDATE : Saturday 16th April
Sex Matters and Fair Play For Women welcome the announcement that the Women’s CiCLE Classic has been saved, with an offer of a three-year sponsorship deal being finalised by the race organiser.
13th April 2022
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British Cycling and Emily Bridges
Sex Matters welcomes the statement from British Cycling that Emily Bridges is not eligible to participate in the British National Omnium Championship on Saturday 2nd April 2022, following the application of Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) guidelines. British Cycling has chosen to recognise Emily’s disappointment, but not the distress, anger, and...
30th March 2022
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Should trans women be able to compete in female sport?
Ex-Team GB athlete Mara Yamauchi (a member of Sex Matters’ advisory group) interviewed by Andrew Doyle for GB News.
13:01 video on YouTube -
Fair Game: biology, fairness and transgender athletes in women’s sports
Jon Pike, Emma Hilton, and Leslie A. Howe lay out the physical advantages of athletes who are born male, and reject gender-based criteria for competition, proposing instead a solution that will allow all athletes to compete fairly.
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On the issue of female athletics, the IOC has shirked its duty to lead
Doriane Coleman and Martina Navratilova analyse the recent IOC Framework on Fairness, Inclusion, and Non-Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity and Sex Variations
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Women in sport, gender identity and the Equality Act
Cathy Devine’s article ‘Female Sports Participation, Gender Identity and the British 2010 Equality Act’ was published in the journal Sport, Ethics and Philosophy (open access version). In this guest post, Cathy Devine explains her findings on the impact of “self-identification eligibility criteria” on women in sport. If the criteria...
11th November 2021