Susan's Place Transgender Resources

Chinese to check athletes' genders in sex-change crackdown at Beijing Olympics

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/beijing_olympics/story/0,27313,24086278-5016752,00.html (http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/beijing_olympics/story/0,27313,24086278-5016752,00.html)
7/26/2008

Beijing has set up a sex determination lab to test female Olympic athletes they suspect are men.

"Suspect athletes will be evaluated from their external appearances by experts and undergo blood tests to examine their sex hormones, genes and chromosomes for sex determination," said Union Medical College Hospital's Professor Tian Qinjie.

I thought these tests weren't performed anymore, since they did nothing but hurt people unfortunate enough to have AIS or other intersex conditions.

Yeah, seems like this is contrary to current Olympics policy.

Of course, it was contrary to HRC policy to push for a T-less ENDA.  I'm beginning to suspect that we're not the most influential group of people.

Lia

This almost seems like a joke,
evaluated for their external appearances!! WTF.

All female shotputters are twice the size of the average men,
are they all suspected men!!

I really wonder how chinese TS can even live a halfway normal life.

Since gender tests are not performed anymore, and cannot be inforced,
what athlete will actually submit to these test!

Its the CIO who runs the games, not the Chinese.

The word crackdown seems also gloriously overwrought since I don't
think there was a lineup of women changing sex.

They probably just mean steroid abuse and are all confused
in the translation.

The really interesting thing is that Transsexuals are allowed to compete (legally) in this Olympics for the first time.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2003/more/11/13/bc.eu.spt.oly.transsexual.ap/ (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2003/more/11/13/bc.eu.spt.oly.transsexual.ap/)

Sex Tests where dropped before the 2000 games in Australia.

Buffy

Got to love the police-state verbiage, "crackdown" and "suspected." Up against the wall, motherlovers!

So does this mean that any male athlete who asks for directions will be tested as a suspected female?

Stealth, under investigation :P

Quote from: Keira on July 29, 2008, 03:41:21 AMSince gender tests are not performed anymore, and cannot be inforced, what athlete will actually submit to these test!

Any athlete who wants to compete.

QuoteThey probably just mean steroid abuse and are all confused in the translation.

Afraid not! The IOC is behind this. The IOC was in contact with certain Intersex groups regarding testing of chromosomes, hormone levels, and various other things. Obviously the IOC is again changing their policy on this.

I left sport in 1969 because of "sex testing", returned in 2006 after the abandonment of testing in 2000, and if the IOC policy filters down to the National level, I will be out again.

Quote from: Northern Jane on July 29, 2008, 10:09:09 AM
I left sport in 1969 because of "sex testing", returned in 2006 after the abandonment of testing in 2000, and if the IOC policy filters down to the National level, I will be out again.

Would this be necessary?  I thought that after the Maria Patino scandal it had pretty much been accepted in sex testing in sport that there are XY females?

Lia

OII Denounces Sexist Discrimination and Human Rights Violations of Intersexed Athletes in Beijing

http://www.intersexualite.org/Olympics.html (http://www.intersexualite.org/Olympics.html)

The Organisation Intersex International is deeply committed to ending human rights violations of intersexed people around the world. OII has learned that the Chinese medical establishment, in compliance with International Olympic Committee procedures, will be testing athletes in Beijing who are suspected as being men competing as women. The use of tests such as chromosome and SRY "sex tests" in Olympic sport is neither scientific nor humane. It is an example of the abuse of scientific fact by the IOC, and their assault on human dignity. Men masquerading as women can easily be identified by a simple appearance check and hormonal tests. "Men" masquerading as "women" have nothing to do with intersexed and transitioned athletes, who will all be the victims of this so called "sex-change crackdown".


"Chinese to check athletes' genders in sex-change crackdown at Beijing Olympics" by Ben English
The Australian, July 27, 2008
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/beijing_olympics/story/0,27313,24086278-5014197,00.html (http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/beijing_olympics/story/0,27313,24086278-5014197,00.html)

So called "genetic sex" tests of all women athletes were dropped in 1999 by the IOC, as they were found to be invalid. "There is no genetic test which can accurately determine an individual's sex," states Professor M. Italiano, M.B.B.S. (A.M.), advisor to Organisation Intersex International on Biosex Variations. Italiano adds, "These tests can only discriminate against intersexed and transitioned athletes, and in fact, they do so based upon a complete misunderstanding of scientific facts. Furthermore, there is no 'sex test' used in the Olympics which can separate intersex and transitioned individuals from each other." Italiano noted that it has also not been shown that intersexed athletes have an unfair advantage over typical females and males, based upon any of the results of these tests. The IOC knows this, and this is one of the reasons why they abolished them as a general screening device in 1999. But they should have abolished chromosome and SRY "sex tests" of women athletes, as it discriminates against them, are invalid and are not necessary for identifying "men cheaters". When an athlete reaches elite status and has been chosen to represent her country in a world arena, the thing she needs the least is to be publicly humiliated on an international stage, based upon separatist, sexist ideology and mistaken beliefs.