Transgendered Contraversy at Canadian DH Mountain Bike Nationals

[rasheedgonzales]

i’m not sure if this is the correct subforum for this, but i thought i’d post it here anyhow …

i came across this interesting discussion while reading some of the mountain bike forums i usually visit and thought i’d post the story up here for some discussion and see what some of you have to say about this issue.

first a little background info:
the contraversy revolves around a transgendered downhill mountain bike racer named michelle dumaresq (formerly michael dumaresq). he (or as some of you may prefer, she) races professionally in the elite women’s category for the nsmb.com mountain bike team. the contraversy has been around for the past few years, especially since dumaresq won the canadian women’s nationals in 2003 and 2004 (not sure if she won again in 2005, but she just won the nationals again this year). mountain bike racing’s governing bodies have ruled that dumaresq can race in the elite women’s category. various women racers have protested while others seemingly don’t have a problem with it.

here’s a wikipedia article on him: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michelle_Dumaresq

his nsmb.com profile: http://blogs.nsmb.com/team/michelle-dumaresque/

so anyhow … as mentioned above, dumaresq won this year’s women’s nationals held in whistler, bc. during the podium ceremony, second place winner danika schroeter, an opponent of the decision to allow dumaresq to race in the women’s elite category, came up on stage donning a t-shirt with the words “100% pure women’s champ 2006” scribbled in black marker across the front.

here’s some more reading for those who wish to read more of what’s been said thus far:

canadian cyclist editorial on what transpired: http://www.canadiancyclist.com/daily...2.04AM12.shtml

discussion on nsmb.com’s forum regarding the issue:
http://bb.nsmb.com/showthread.php?p=1425560#post1425560

and finally, a photo of the podium ceremony:

(left to right: 2nd place danika schroeter, winner michelle dumaresq, 3rd place adrienne miller).

should dumaresq be allowed to race in the women’s category? or even more general than that, should transgendered athletes (particular “women” who used to be men) be allowed to compete at a professional level in their new respective gender categories?

what are your thoughts?

[thaite]

I understand that men and women identify with and adhere to their genders in varying degrees from ultramasculine to ultrafeminine, and that identification can vary in degrees between heterosexuality and homosexuality.

Now, that said, we therefore open up a multitude of possibilities for gender and sexual identification and adherence. I personally think that transgenderism is an extreme form of body modification to alter one's appearance to express oneself with what one identifies. An imperfect simile would be liken it to tattooing or piercing; as to say that these are symbols that one identifies so strongly with, that a person wears it upon their body as an expression of one's identity.

In other words, suppose somebody gets a tattoo of a tiger on their arm. Now, that person probably doesn't actually think they are a tiger, but nonetheless there are qualities of the tiger that a person appreciates and strongly identifies with, perhaps it's strength, intelligence, or whatever. On the other hand, there are people whose bodies are so extremely modified and they actually do think they are the animal or whatever they are emulating.

It is this last sort that I believe the transgendered fall into. Just because you think you're a tiger and go out of your way look like one doesn't make you a tiger. And just because you feel like a woman and modify your body to make you look like a women doesn't make you a woman. You are what you were born with, right down to your genes.

So, to finally answer the question, no, I don't think the transgendered should be allowed to compete with their chosen gender categories.

[hkRT]

Mountain biking is a physical activity. Physical activities are necessarily divided into categories by marked physical differences between groups like gender, age, and maybe weight, depending on the type of activity... So whether the person is transgender or not, it makes no sense to let him compete in the women's competition.

[Arex]

WTF?

On the one hand, I want to say that if a guy goes through the trouble of cutting off his beans and frank, getting implants, undergoing hormone therapy, etc., all for the purpose of becoming a "woman," then we ought to go out of our way to recognize that person as a woman.

On the other hand, lack of nuts aside, a transgender woman is still physiologically and genetically a man, and, therefore, may still possess the physical advantages that come with being a man, so it's not really fair for that person to compete in sports as a woman.

Building off thaite's analogy, it's probably no more fair to allow a transgender female to compete in woman's athletics than to allow a transvestite to compete as a woman. Dude should be in the men's competition.