Another "wow" moment from the world of professional track-and-field.
The article's not long, but here's the short-short version: The favorite in the women's 800-meter race at the world championships has displayed such extraordinary form that she is being gender-tested.
Here's the best part- according to officials, the test is not being done because she's smoking the rest of the field so badly, but because her time has improved so dramatically over last year's.
Chris Chase, one of Yahoo's bloggers, has a post up about this.
He makes the eminently logical suggestion that if someone's race time improves to such an astounding degree and unfairness is involved, it's because they're on the juice, not because a woman is in fact a man. How they came to the conclusion that this is an issue worth investigating is beyond my ability for logical leaps.
The best part, though, is the end of the article on the first link.
“This is a medical condition. It is nothing that she has done. There is a need to make sure rules are followed,” Davies said, adding discretion and the protection of the athlete was paramount.
“We are more concerned for the person and not to make this as something that is humiliating ,” he said.
They haven't even done the test and this is already epic fail.
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I didn't intend for there to be two "best parts", but actually, I think this might deserve it.
I just saw this and was cruising on over to see if anyone had brought it up yet. I don't understand what their basis is. She's strong and has a deep voice? Woop-dee-doo!
the "gender test" is looking for male hormones. It's a ridiculously harmful misnomer because gender is an identity, not a biological condition, but sexism rules the day in sports, apparently.
I'm fairly certain it's more complicated than that. Per the article, the test requires "an endocrinologist, a gynaecologist, an internal medicine expert, an expert on gender and a psychologist". The endo and maybe internal medicine expert would be needed if it was just a test for hormones. And what in the world is the psychologist for?
Hell, the psychologist makes it seem as if they really do understand gender is in the mind. But I'd love to hear the argument for what that has to do with running around a track.
the new york time online front page has this article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/20/sports/20runner.html?_r=1&hpw
like spiffy mcbang said, the gender test is very complex, and shrouded with mystery. I was happy to see this quote at the end of the article:
'“But at the end of the day, they are going to have to make a social decision on what counts as male and female, and they will wrap it up as if it is simply a scientific decision,” Dreger said. “And the science actually tells us sex is messy. Or as I like to say, ‘Humans like categories neat, but nature is a slob.’ ”'
How do you score such a battery of tests? What counts as female 'enough' to be allowed into one sex box vs. another? Though I think it's incredibly sad that this poor woman is be subjected to this testing, I think this case clearly illustrates just how subjective our sex and gender boxes really are, and a part of me wants to hold this up to the faces of many who are so sure that nature has set up only two boxes for us. It's just not that easy.
I'm a little confused as to why the psychologist is needed. As I think the officials/bodies have got their terminology mixed up: it is the athlete's sex that is the issue not their gender.
IOC regulations, apparently, specify 'gender at birth'. Nobody displays a gender identity at birth, so they must mean sex. Which makes sense, it is on the basis of physical/biological characteristics that athletes should be seperated (if they are to be seperated), not on their identity.
Apart from the appallingly mixed up use of terminology, needless publicity, etc. I don't have too much of a problem with this. It is undesirable for biological males to be competing in women's events. Women are dissuaded from sport enough by our society as it is; how would it be if it became known that in order to be a top female athlete you had to be a biological male? The notion that sport is for men would be reinforced.
As far as this athlete is concerned: It's not just that she is strong and has a deep voice. If you've seen photos of the athlete, she also has facial stuble which is rare for women, and a masculine jaw line, and masculine shaped upper body. (http://www.morethanthegames.co.uk/athletics/195710-caster-semenya-allowed-compete-world-championships-final) None of these things by two or three would arouse suspicion (especially in athletes), but together, and along with a marked improvement in performance at an age when boys mature physically (and women have usually reached physical maturity), seem like reasonable grounds for testing. Bear in mind that unlike when drugs are suspected, they have to schedule a test. Despite the fact that athletes have cheated in this way in the past, there is no routine gender testing.
Personally I hope the athlete is a biological woman, it would bring awareness to the variety of forms "femininity" can take. But if they aren't female they shouldn't be competing in a "woman's event".
But doesnt the absence of an Adam's apple already confirm she's not a guy? Dont only men have Adam's apples? I know women have Eve's apples and theyre smaller than mens. I havent seen her with any prominent throat bump. Isnt it that even MTF cant erase that component of themselves?
I don't think the concern is that she changed sex but rather she is an intersex individual who is much closer to male than female.
presumably you mean "transsexual woman" not MTF, which is not polite. the adams apple enlarges in the body under the influence of testosterone during male puberty - the longer vocal cords cause the voice pitch do drop. Depending on exactly how it enlarges, it may be a sex marker, or not. Mine is not ( I am a transsexual woman who transitioned after puberty) Some will have a trachea shave - which reduces the forward protrusion, if they can afford it, often combined with facial surgery.
We've also had Germaine Greer spewing her bile about how trans women are all deluded men. Hateful evil person that she is.
As the blogger said, steroids would normally be the first thing to blame for such a change in performance, not to mention that some can change the appearance of athletes (making women more masculine, for example). The comments after the linked article and blog are horrible, calling her a "thing", saying all they need to do is pull down her pants, calling her unfortunate because she's not feminine looking, saying that if she is a man she must be messed up in the head...I don't know how this will turn out, but I hope it works out and that she can tell everyone "STFU, I'm the fastest damn woman in the world!!"