The question of whether or not to allow transgender athletes to join sports teams of their proper gender has been becoming increasingly relevant in recent years. While many think this debate is one of personal opinion, it is important to look at it from a scientific perspective.
NPR interviewed Dr. Eric Vilain, a pediatrician and geneticist who spent a large portion of his career researching this subject. In this interview, Vilain expresses his belief that transgender athletes do not have an advantage over cisgender athletes, who identify as the gender they were assigned at birth (Ermyas and Wakeam, “Cisgender”). He has worked alongside both the International Olympic Committee and the NCAA, and he explains that laws limiting transgender participation in sports are not backed by scientific evidence. The Mississippi Fairness Act is an example of legislation that prohibits schools from allowing transgender female students to participate in female sports. This act is one of about 35 bills that have been introduced that have the ability to forbid transgender women from competing in a women’s sport (Ermyas and Wakeam).
Lia Thomas, a 22 year old University of Pennsylvania swimmer has recently been in the spotlight regarding this topic. She was a three-year member of the men’s swim team at Penn and was talented enough to earn All-Ivy League honors. Now, as a member of the women’s team she has broken several records, at both the school and national level (Reilly). Before the recent rule change, Thomas met the original National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) requirement of taking hormone blocking drugs along with estrogen for at least one year. Lia has been doing this for around two and a half years, which is plenty of time for her hormone level to come down to that of a cisgender women. Once the NCAA dropped the hormone therapy requirement, the decisions regarding transgender athletes was left in the hands of the governing body of the sport.
In addition to that rule change, transgender athletes are now required to submit evidence of their testosterone levels at the start of their season, six months after the start and four weeks before any type of championship in their sport. The policy released by USA Swimming requires that transgender female athletes must have a documented testosterone level under 5 nanomoles per liter for 36 months. This should be a simple requirement to meet, as about 94% of transgender women have testosterone levels under 2 nanomoles per liter. Specifically regarding swimming, it is important to mention that Thomas may have a height advantage over an average sized cisgender woman as well as an advantage in the length of her arms and legs, which could allow her to swim faster. But transgender athletes can also be at a disadvantage, as hormone replacement therapy causes larger bodies to run on less muscle mass than before they begin hormone therapy. This can affect an athlete’s recovery, endurance and speed. Recently, it was announced that Thomas will be allowed to swim in conference championships, but it is still unknown if she will be able to swim in the NCAA championships (Winberg).
https://billypenn.com/2022/02/09/lia-thomas-penn-swimmer-trans-athletes-science-ncaa-sports/