Transgender Triathlete Chris Mosier on Transition and Inclusivity in Sports
Monday, November 7, 2011 - 12:42pm by Danny Heffernan, GLAAD's Advertising & Campaigns Fellow
http://www.glaad.org/blog/transgender-triathlete-chris-mosier-transition-and-inclusivity-sportsThis week, we spoke with Chris Mosier about competing as a transgender athlete, breaking down gender stereotypes in sports, and being an advocate for social justice.
Having always been athletic, Chris enjoys competition and has participated in various sports and athletic events over the years. Starting out as a runner, he later embraced the challenge of the triathlon, recently finishing in the top 7% of the New York City Triathlon. Like many transgender athletes, Chris struggled with how transition might affect his performance and treatment from competitors. He often placed highly at competitions prior to his transition, but did not feel comfortable walking away with a first place trophy from the female category. Chris spoke about his experience with Chicago GoPride, saying, "Competing as a woman, I thought about gender all the time, to a point where it interfered with my ability to be successful because I didn't feel comfortable at races. Now, I feel more able to focus and gender doesn't come up as much."
