Martina Navratilova sparks fiery debate over transgender women in sport

Legendary tennis player Martina Navratilova has re-sparked a controversial debate after claiming transgender women shouldn’t be allowed to participate in the women’s sporting competitions.

The 62-year-old, who won an impressive 18 Grand Slams throughout her sporting career, angered the LGBTQ community at the weekend after writing in an opinion piece for The Times that “if you have a penis, you shouldn’t compete as a woman”.

Adding to her argument from a few months ago, in which she addressed transgender cyclist Rachel McKinnon’s success in a world championship event, Navratilova said, that it’s “not fair” for a transgender woman to be placed in the same category as those who were born female.

The tennis great was labelled “transphobic” for singling McKinnon out, claiming although her testosterone levels were within the normal range to compete in the women’s division, her build could cause some problems for competitors.

Navratilova said reducing hormone levels “does not solve the problem” and other factors such as muscle and bone density pose a clear advantage.

“To put the argument at its most basic: a man can decide to be female, take hormones if required by whatever sporting organisation is concerned, win everything in sight and perhaps earn a small fortune, and then reverse his decision and go back to making babies if he so desires,” she claimed. “It’s insane and it’s cheating.

“Indeed, if a male were to change gender in such a way as to eliminate any accumulated advantage, he would have to begin hormone treatment before puberty. For me, that is unthinkable.”

While Navratilova said she understands that transgender women such as McKinnon are following the rules set out by various sporting committees around the world, she claimed it’s still unfair to have someone who is biologically a man compete in the women’s category.

“I know the argument is made that sport is always unfair and that the notion of a level playing field is a myth,” she added. “Someone who is five foot tall has next to no chance on a basketball court. But I still believe that fairness should always be valued and strived for, and that unfairness introduced through human action and chemical means should be condemned and outlawed.”

Her comments have once again sparked debate with many across the world taking to social media to express their views. Many labelled Navratilova “transphobic”, saying they no longer respect the player as they once had.

“We’re pretty devastated to discover that Martina Navratilova is transphobic. If trans women had an advantage in sport, why aren’t trans women winning gold medals left, right and centre?” group Trans Actual questioned in a post on Twitter. “Cos [sic] trans women don’t have an advantage. Look up the changes that oestrogen makes to the body.”

We’re pretty devastated to discover that Martina Navratilova is transphobic. If trans women had an advantage in sport, why aren’t trans women winning gold medals left, right & centre? Coz trans women don’t have an advantage. Look up the changes that oestrogen makes to the body.

— Trans Actual (@TransActualUK) February 17, 2019

Another added: “I am horrified and devastated that Martina Navratilova, one of my earliest role models, has decided to go full on transmisogynist. @martina you can and must be better than this, Bigotry is not the path to justice”.

However, others spoke out in support of the athlete, claiming she is no way “transphobic” and is just expressing her opinion on the matter.

https://twitter.com/JC_Pettigrew/status/1097119503169785856

“She’s just highlighting and articulating a perfectly valid and persuasive POV (point of view) on a highly contentious topic. This doesn’t make Martina Navratilova a transphobe in any way,” one person wrote.

This isn’t the first time controversy over transgender athletes competing in certain categories has been addressed. Last year, New Zealand’s Laurel Hubbard was at the receiving end of some stark criticism prior to her appearance at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

The transgender woman was the favourite for the 90kg-plus weightlifting category however, many claimed she too had an unfair advantage as she had transitioned to a woman just five years before.

While her testosterone levels were well within the range to compete in the women’s category there was argument she still possessed a greater strength than her competitors.

Sadly for Hubbard her chances of winning the gold medal were cut short when she suffered a severe elbow injury while attempting a 132kg lift.

What are your thoughts on this? Do you think transgender women should be allowed to compete in the women’s category?