Sports?

[Alíz]

I haven't seen any similar posts here, so I thought I might ask here.

Background before I begin: I'm AFAB, identify as agender (in which I adopt the definition of 'gender neutral') and present mostly masculine. I haven't started transitioning in any way. I haven't changed my name (which is quite clearly female), legal gender, pronouns etc.(mainly because it's too much of a hassle and not worth the effort, especially in Hong Kong where I live). I'm not on T and haven't undergone surgery (and don't plan to, except for maybe top surgery). The only way I have decided on transitioning is binding.

I'm going to university in a year, and want to start doing gymnastics then. Specifically men's gymnastics.

I've heard that trans men could participate in men's sporting events, but would I be considered 'not trans enough'? I fear even if I'm allowed to participate as a male that I won't be taken seriously. Thoughts?

[elkie-t]

Without T you aren't likely to be competitive enough against male athletes and unlikely will make into a team. But you might be able to train with them. On another hand, your university might have policies prohibiting you from training in male gymnastics (just because they might consider it a waste of resources or whatever, I don't know how rules are written in Hong Kong).

If it would be a private gym, you probably will have better chances to chose what you want to do... But then you'd have to pay for it. Who pays money, chooses the music.


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[Alíz]

Without T you aren't likely to be competitive enough against male athletes and unlikely will make into a team.

Probably true. I don't ask to be in a team anyway, it's just for fun.

I want to go to university in the UK. I don't know how things would be there, though. Ideas?

[elkie-t]

Why male gymnastics? It's a great workout and ability to move your body is great but it's not as popular with the guys as it used to be (there are more masculine sports), and girls gymnastics is essentially the same (if you want just the conditioning effects).


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[BlueJaye]

I'm probably going to make some enemies with this response, but I'm not trying to be inflammatory. I don't think transgender people who haven't transitioned fully before the end of puberty should try to compete with the opposite gender they were assigned at birth.

My reasoning for this is that there are some important biological changes that develop during puberty that can't be changed later. Things like lung volume differences between the genders, skeletal geometry, etc. It doesn't tend to be as much of an issue with trans men competing against cis men, but it's a big controversy with trans women competing against cis women. And despite being trans myself, I am against letting trans men and women compete against the gender they identify with if they went through puberty as the opposite gender.

If you're not wanting to be on a team, then you would probably be best off looking for a private gym where you can pay to do whatever you want.

[elkie-t]

 Different sports have different demands. For some, having bigger body and lungs would indeed be an advantage. For others, it would be neutral. Yet for some it would be a disadvantage. So far we haven't seen any women's world champion being MTF (well except Castor Semenia but she is a cis-female with naturally high testosterone). So, I'd not look for an issue where is none. Sports federations seems to take care of it.

All top athletes have great deal of natural advantage over other sportsmen (+hard work of course + good luck). But shall we deny Michael Phelps participation just because he's unfairly big, or Venus Williams just because she's too muscular for a woman?


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