Lia Thomas banned from women’s sports, authorities say she “does not qualify”
In a world more obsessed with rules than a hall monitor with a new whistle, the International Women’s Sports Federation (IWSF) announced today that Lia Thomas, the transgender athlete who became a lightning rod, has been banned from participating in women’s sports.
First, let’s address the elephant in the room, or in this case, the grizzly bear on the diving board. Ms. Thomas, a trans woman, has been making waves, literally, in the swimming world for some time now. It seems that every time she takes a dip in the water, she also plunges us into the heated depths of the debate over transgender athletes in sports.
Well, the IWSF, which has all the common sense of a group that names itself after an imaginary Star Trek federation, has decided it has had enough of this fuss. They have shown Thomas the way out, the way a matador waves his cape, saying “hasta la vista, nene” or whatever it is that Spanish bullfighters say.
The IWSF’s decision came in the wake of an increasingly heated debate over the physiological advantages and disadvantages between cisgender athletes and transgender women. According to them, their decision was based on a “scientific consensus.” One can’t help but be reminded of the time when the scientific consensus believed that the Earth was flat and the center of the Universe. Let’s hope their sources are more credible this time around.
At a recent press conference, IWSF President Sir Reginald Pompous III defended the decision with all the elegance of a walrus on a unicycle. He noted: “We just need to ensure a level playing field.” It is indeed a rather innovative view of the equality that can be achieved by banning individuals. Perhaps someone should tell Sir Reginald that such innovative thinking brought us things like the Berlin Wall and prohibition.
The ban, as expected, has created shockwaves. Critics argue that this is just the latest step in a trend of increasing regulations that threaten to turn sports into a bureaucracy-ridden nightmare. The IWSF’s solution to the problem of trans athletes? Simply remove them from the equation. Now, why didn’t we think of that? It’s so simple it’s almost medieval. But I guess when you’re a federation that sounds like it was christened by George Lucas, subtlety isn’t really your thing.
While there is a valid debate about fairness in sports, the solution should not be total exclusion. However, the IWSF seems to have all the subtlety of a charging rhino. Instead of sitting down and crafting an inclusive policy that respects the rights of all athletes, they have decided to go the route of an 18th century monarch and simply ban everything they don’t like.
Meanwhile, Lia Thomas’ fans have reacted to the news with all the calm, measured response of a cat thrown into a pool. They point out that Lia has conformed to all the hormonal norms and by leaving her out, the IWSF is being about as fair as a poker game with a card player.
In an era where we should be embracing diversity and inclusion, it seems rather strange to have a discussion about banning athletes because they don’t fit a specific mould. Then again, this is the same sporting world that gets upset every time a footballer takes a knee, so perhaps we shouldn’t be too surprised.
As the debate rages on, one can’t help but wonder what’s next for the IWSF. Will they start banning athletes for being too tall, too strong, or too good at their sport? Only time will tell, but it’s clear that for now, they’ve jumped headlong into a decision that’s about as popular as a porcupine in a balloon shop.
This decision may satisfy those who believe in rigid definitions of sports categories, but it is worth remembering that the world of sport was once a place where a man named Babe was a baseball great, a guy named Magic was a basketball wizard and a woman named Billie Jean King broke down barriers in tennis. It was a world where individual achievements were celebrated, not grounds for exclusion.
In this case, it would seem that the IWSF, in its attempt to ensure a level playing field, has forgotten the spirit of sport: competition, diversity and inclusion. This ban on Lia Thomas could be seen as a worrying sign of the times or a misstep by a governing body that has all the grace of a bull in a china shop. Either way, it is a decision that will undoubtedly continue to reverberate through the world of sport, reminding us that even in the 21st century, we still have a long way to go before we truly understand the meaning of fair play.
