IS THE USTA THROWING THEIR OWN LEAGUE PLAYERS UNDER THE BUS?
FEMALES ARE NOT SMALL MALES WITH LESS TESTOSTERONE
CONTEXT: This long article is my attempt to analyze the situation of Transgender Women in sports while making it clear that I'm on the side of biological women. The first two pages are about the situation and end with the best article about truth and lies on the issue imo. The last page is about how shamefully the notoriously woke USTA handles it and leaves their adult league players in the dirt.
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I have been reporting about Transgender Women's issues since September 2019 when my article "Transgender Confusion Coming to Your Courts Soon!" was one of the most-read TCB items that year. It not only gave you a birds-eye view of the entire situation but it also provided some explanations as to some of those new terms used. (Disclaimer: If you're one of those old-fashioned people who think if you have a penis, you're a man and if you have a vagina, you're a woman, you'd better rethink that notion. You are out of line and you will be shouted down by people who are not biologists but still know the human body much better than you!)
TRANSGENDER - A transgender woman is a person who was assigned male at birth but who identifies as a female.
CISGENDER - When a person is cisgender, they identify the gender that matches the sex that they were assigned at birth. A cisgender woman is a person who was assigned female at birth and identifies as female.
According to Elizabeth Boskey, Ph.D., posted under 'What it means to be cisgender' in the August 21 issue of verywellhealth (2019), and medically reviewed by a board-certified physician, sex and gender are not the same things. Here is her definition:
SEX - A biological and physiological designation. Refers to both a person's chromosomes and the way that their genes are expressed.
GENDER - A social construct. Refers to the social roles, behaviors, and expectations considered appropriate for men and women.
But wait - there's more. Let's add some more definitions regarding sex and gender so you're really up to date on generally accepted current terminology.
Sex or Natal Sex
Assigned sex at birth: The sex (male or female) assigned to a child at birth, most often based on the child's external anatomy. (I would have never guessed that!)
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Four main Genders
Masculine (e.g. male)
Feminine (e.g. female)
Neuter (e.g. chair)
Common (e.g. teacher)
Seven more Genders
Agender (neither/nor, doesn't have a gender. is not concerned about their physical sex))
Cisgender (Common gender, man/woman)
Genderfluid (flexible with one's gender expression, depending on the day)
Genderqueer (between genders, a mix of both. questions gender stereotypes)
Intersex (medical condition, has both chromosomes)
Gender nonconforming (does not conform to gender-based expectations, may be Transgender)
Transgender (gender identity differs from natal sex)
If you have any doubt that all this mumbo-jumbo is designed to remove the notion that a "normal" still exists, I have a bridge to sell to you. Is it only me or does the term "woke" come to your mind, too? At the time, I warned that the issue of Transgender Women is bound to come into our tennis world sooner or later. While it hasn't happened yet, I think it can't be far away that a man who doesn't quite have it to go professional and on tour, will turn Transgender and will try to compete on the women's tour.
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MEET LIA THOMAS
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Thomas began swimming on the men's team at the University of Pennsylvania in 2017, and during her freshman year, recorded the sixth-fastest national men's freestyle time. On the men's swim team in 2018–2019, Thomas finished second in the men’s 500, 1,000, and 1,650-yard freestyle at the Ivy League championships as a sophomore in 2019. During the 2018–2019 season, Thomas recorded the top university men's team times in the 500 free, 1000 free, and 1650 free.
Thomas began transitioning using hormone replacement therapy in May 2019 and the rest is history, as they say. In March 2022, Thomas became the first openly transgender athlete to win an NCAA Division I national championship in any sport, after winning the women's 500-yard freestyle.
Photo: Fox News
Speaking about woke. See how Wikipedia describes Lia Thomas in their short abbreviation. You wouldn't guess that "she" is a Transgender woman. You have to click and go inside to find out.
When Thomas took that first place away from a real woman, we were in the middle of a culture war that had been raging for years now. Like always, the opinions are split along political lines where the more liberal thinking people are supporting Transgender Women being able to beat real women anywhere they can and where the more conservative thinkers are concerned that women's sports will soon become irrelevant. If you ask any female competitor who has to face a former male competitor in competition, you can imagine what side they are on.
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MEET 5 FEMALE GLADIATORS
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During my research for this article, I found out there are at least five women fighting the good fight for women's rights. Two of these women are tennis legends.
Martina Navratilova
Tennis Legend
Miami, Florida
Helen Joyce
Director of Advocacy
Sex Matters
London, England
Chris Evert
Tennis Legend
Boca Raton, Florida
Nancy Hogshead-Makar
Olympic Champion
Civil Rights Lawer
CEO, Champion Women
Jacksonville, Florida
Sharon Davies
Company Director
CW Creative Works
Bath, England
And, lo and behold, Billie Jean King is not one of them. For the first time ever, BJK seems to not be on the women's side of an issue and that is truly sad in my opinion. She points to science when it comes to Transgender issues. But that science community is at least split in their opinions. Many of them can't find any good reasons for saying a man is now a woman because of hormone replacement therapy. So, for me, the former champion of women's causes is on the wrong side of an issue.
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The above five women are outspoken in their support of women's sports but that doesn't necessarily mean they are against Transgender Women's sports. On the contrary. I have read dozens of posts, tweets, and articles about the subject. Below are some examples.
FEMALES ARE NOT SMALL MALES WITH LESS TESTOSTERONE
We're starting out with a poll by the left-leaning Washington Post. They can't get themselves to report anything negative about the Amerian subculture where radical issues are always on a pedestal and anyone with traditional (read: conservative) opinions is the real enemy.
The headline of this WaPo poll should be: "Only 30% of Americans are supportive of allowing transgender women and girls to compete with other women and girls in high school sports and only 28% think it should be allowed for college and professional sports."
Their version of that poll result clearly distorts public sentiment for that issue imo.
On the other side of the political spectrum are Fox News and the Washington Examiner. They are two publications that have reported a lot in regards to Transgender Women in sports meaning the end of women's sports.
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Fox News reports about the same WaPo poll: Americans overwhelmingly oppose transgender athletes in female sports, poll shows.
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The Washington Examiner: You can tell he’s mentally ill,’ says UPenn swimmer after Lia Thomas Good Morning America interview.
Sharron Elizabeth Davies, MBE is an English former competitive swimmer who represented Great Britain in the Olympics and European championships and competed for England in the Commonwealth Games. Davies has attended 12 consecutive Olympic Games, competing in three games and then working in the media for the BBC Sport.
Nancy Hogshead-Makar is a four-time medalist at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. She has long fought for equality in women’s sports and is the head of Champion Women, which advocates for girls and women in sports.
Very interesting article clarifying the problem: Nancy Hogshead-Makar Explains Problems With Lia Thomas Situation
Lucy Allan is a member of the UK parliament.
Trans women are not biological females. It's that simple and it's not hateful. It's a fact.
Martina Navratilova
News from Idaho
In March 2020, Idaho Governor Brad Little signed into law the "Fairness in Women's Sports Act", also known as House Bill 500. This legislation, the first of its kind in the United States, prohibits transgender athletes from competing in sports against athletes of the other biological sex.
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Excerpt from a Times article about the situation in the UK:
“Under the Gender Recognition Act, for example, all a man needs to do is make a statutory declaration in front of a solicitor, and he’s a woman. He can participate in women’s sports, including boxing. He can use women’s toilets and changing rooms. He can be admitted to a women’s prison, and indeed there are two violent biological men in Limerick prison at present, one convicted of rape threats and who must be addressed as she.”
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Feb 1, 2022 article in THE HILL
Experts warn gender-neutral language like ‘pregnant people’ may put mothers at risk
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Then dropped the FINA ruling in June. FINA is the international federation recognized by the International Olympic Committee for administering international competitions in water sports.
FINA makes historic decision to restrict transgender swimmers in women's events (World swimming's governing body has effectively banned transgender women from competing in women's events)
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Helen Joyce wrote an interesting opinion piece in NIKKEI Asia:
FINA ruling on transwomen ends 20-year fantasy that sex is not real. She writes, "FINA's new rules have been widely reported as a "ban on trans swimmers." They are nothing of the sort. Transwomen are still welcome to compete with other male athletes, and FINA is considering a new "open" category to ensure no one feels excluded."
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Good news: There are also a few men taking on the issue and being on the side of women. Woohoo!
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Interesting 42-minute video: Dr. Ross Tucker, PhD - Biological Perspectives on Transgender Athletes in Sport 2022
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Jonathan Kay is a Canadian writer based in Toronto. He writes, "FINA members widely adopted a new "gender inclusion policy" on Sunday that only permits swimmers who transitioned before age 12 to compete in women's events. The organisation also proposed an "open competition category."
Revealing truths and lies regarding trans arguments​
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And finally, one of the best articles on the subject comes from a Canadian who calls himself justdad7 on Twitter. He writes in his profile: "Retired lawyer from Canada with interest in human rights and medical ethics. Women have a right to same-sex spaces and sterilizing children is unethical."
"I have been following the gender debates (if you can call them that) for nearly three years and it has been an eye-opening experience. In many years of being involved in law and politics, I have never encountered as much intellectual dishonesty as I have seen from the people who try to defend males in female sports or destroy healthy body systems in gender-confused children.
I emphasize that this is intellectual dishonesty. Direct lying of the kind that could result in a perjury charge is rare. What is everywhere are fallacious reasoning, equivocation, and misleading use of statistics. Most of the popular media outlets that have historically challenged this type of misinformation have been captured by the new orthodoxy."
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IS THE USTA THROWING THEIR OWN LEAGUE PLAYERS UNDER THE BUS?
It didn't take long for USTA executives to draw up a statement about the Transgender issue directed at their biggest program, adult leagues. What they effectively did was open the door for biological males to be allowed to play against women in leagues and tournaments. I can see the USTA Board that probably had to sign off on this trying to be as woke as possible in order to shed the "good old boys image" once and for all. I wonder if they knew about their new Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer Marisa Grimes Galiber's rather radical views when they hired her last year. Although she is of course right that "D&I problems at the USTA are systemic." Just look at the club of white boys that held the post of ED and CEO in the last 100+ years. The below Transgender Policy is even harder to understand knowing that First Vice President (and next President) Brian Hainline is actually a frigging medical doctor!
What the USTA effectively did was open the door for biological males to be allowed to play against women in leagues and tournaments.
I also wonder whether any of the USTA sections are aware of what's coming their way. My suggestion: DO NOT FOLLOW USTA national recommendations here. Write your own rules into the league and tournament programs.
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Here is the wording of the USTA National Transgender Inclusion Policy and my comments in blue.
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A. Transgender
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Those who transition from female to male are eligible to compete in the male category without restriction. (How about looking at the FINA decision and reconsidering that statement?)
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Those who transition from male to female are eligible to compete in the female category under the following conditions:
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The athlete has declared that her gender identity is female. The declaration cannot be changed, for sporting purposes, for a minimum of four years.
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Hormonal therapy appropriate for the assigned sex has been administered in a verifiable manner and for a sufficient length of time to minimize gender-related advantages in sport competitions. (How about looking at the FINA decision and reconsidering that statement?)
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In the event of non-compliance, the athlete’s eligibility for female competition will be suspended for 12 months.
B. Hyperandrogenism in Female Athletes
If an athlete is not eligible for female competition, the athlete should be eligible to compete in male competition. (Hyperandrogenism refers to the excessive presence of the male sex hormones testosterone, androsterone and androstenedione in women, and the effects that they have on the female body. Very rare that those women participate in sports)
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C. League and Recreational Competition
On the league and recreational side of the equation, the USTA takes the position that we do not require confirmations of any of these items. (How about that? It's outrageous!) Above all, we do not want to be an obstacle to recreational participation. We seek to respect all backgrounds, lifestyles and personal choices, and we take it on faith that players who compete under these rules are doing so not to gain a competitive advantage, but to enjoy participating in a manner in which they are comfortable. (Who wants to buy my bridge in Brooklyn?)
The USTA Transgender Policy is even harder to understand knowing that First Vice President (and next President) Brian Hainline
is actually a frigging medical doctor!
My message for Lew Sherr and the USTA Board: It's OK that you're all always trying to be woker than the rest of us regular tennis folks. We all love all tennis players. Gay, straight, black, brown, white, young, old, Jewish, Christian, Muslims, Hindus, you name it. I understand what good old boys do to appear diverse and embracing. You jump on an issue and trumpet it out as if you owned it. Like an ex-smoker condemning cigs at every opportunity. Or a Vegan trying to tell us how bad it is to murder a cow. I get it.
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But here you are on the wrong side of the issue. Your league ladies are the sections' bread and butter. When they revolt and stay away, you will never get them back. You are now practically herding them toward other leagues and.... wait for it... PICKLEBALL!
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Is that what you want, USTA?
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What your brilliant board or committee should have done is announce that Trans Women have to play UP one NTRP level if they want to play League on a women's team. Put it into the self-rate function. End of story.
The USTA is herding their bread and butter league demographic toward other leagues and Pickleball!
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