Trans Women in Sport - BBC Documentary with Martina Navratilova

Martina Navratilova 

Martina Navratilova presented a BBC programme that debated the inclusion of Trans athletes in elite sports, and showed the body of research that is being undertaken at Loughborough university into transgender and the physiological affects of hormone on strength and endurance.

The study is over five years and will explore the pre-hormone period, transitioning period and post transition period, with a compressive testing of various blood levels against strength, flexibility and VO2 max with a comparable study of non-transgender individuals.

Other sports people in non-athletic fields were included and motorsports driver, Charlie Martin, was very good at highlighting areas where male, female and transgender can all compete in the same arena.

Charlie Martin 

At present, the evidence points to a marked reduction in strength and endurance in transitioning from male to female with in a few months of commencing hormone therapy. However there are cases of intersexed individuals (such as Caster Semenya) that are being reviewed to assess the validity of the restrictions that have been imposed.

Caster Semenya 

My Thoughts 
I thought that the program was reasonable as it showed the plight of Trans athletes and sports people, and gave a lot of time to the research,  but as expected it could not give any insight as to the compromise that will have to be made if there is to be a ‘level playing field’ where Trans Women can compete in what is seen as complete ‘fairness’ against Cis women.

The programme seemed to be attempting to recover some credibility for Ms Navratilova following her unguarded comments on Trans athletes and it seems to come across that she is genuinely upset that her words caused so much anguish, and has taken steps to make amends.
worth a watch and points to ponder.

See BBC website for more info - ‘’ The Trans Women Athlete Debate ‘’

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00069nr

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PS - 26.07.19 - BBC news report 

It will take female athletes "being thrown under the bus" at Tokyo 2020 before changes are made to transgender rules, says ex-swimmer Sharron Davies.

International Olympic Committee (IOC) guidelines state that transgender women must suppress testosterone levels for at least 12 months before competition.

But in March, Davies and others wrote to the IOC calling for more research.

In Tokyo, Laurel Hubbard of New Zealand could become the first transgender female to win an Olympic medal.

The 41-year-old weightlifter won two golds at the Pacific Games earlier in July.

After Samoa's Commonwealth Games champion Feagaiga Stowers missed out on a medal, Hubbard's participation was criticised. 

An Olympic silver medallist in 1980, Davies - who said she has had no response from the IOC since writing to it - says the body is conducting a "live experiment".

The Briton told BBC Sport: "I find it extraordinary that [Hubbard winning medals] is where we have to go before the IOC open their eyes.

"I'm positive things will change but the problem is we will be throwing females under the bus before it does change."

Transgender women in sport is a hotly debated topic, with former Wimbledon champion Martina Navratilova and transgender cyclist Rachel McKinnon among those who have entered the discussion.

Davies believes that reducing testosterone for 12 months before competition does not represent a level playing field for female athletes.

She says that despite those guidelines, transgender female athletes retain biological advantages gained in puberty. 

However, some transgender women, such as masters track cycling world champion McKinnon, say reducing testosterone in their bodies results in "radical physiological changes".

The IOC did not respond to BBC Sport's request on whether it would change its guidelines for the Tokyo Olympics, but said it was "working to develop new guidance" to help international federations (IFs) shape sport-specific policies and regulations in relation to fairness, safety, inclusivity and non-discrimination."

It added it was "committed to furthering inclusion, without discrimination based on gender identity and/or sex characteristics" and "is also concerned to ensure equality for women and their empowerment across sport".

• 'The IOC is not interested in what athletes have to say'

Davies, two-time Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes and marathon world record holder Paula Radcliffe - with the support of 60 other top-class athletes - wrote a letter to IOC president Thomas Bach in March asking for the body to look further into the "residual benefits" of being a transgender athlete.

But the lack of response means she does not expect anything to change before the Tokyo Games, which start on 24 July 2020. 

"We've had nothing, not even a polite letter to say thank you for your interest or your request and we will look into it," she added.

"It just says that the IOC is not interested in what athletes have to say. I find this so disheartening when sport should be run for the athletes. 

"I think it will take some situations at the Olympics and people being very distressed with what they see before we see any changes. 

"Once we start seeing well-known female athletes being beaten, then people will start standing up and understanding the situation. It will be a shame because it should be about the sport, fairness and the best we can be."

The IOC said: "Our approach to providing guidance on participation is based on an ever-evolving area of research and learning" by consulting medical, scientific, legal and human rights experts, the IOC athletes' commission, the IOC women and sport commission, IFs, and national governing bodies.

It added: "Our guidance will be subject to periodic review in order to take account of relevant developments in the area, in consultation with all stakeholders concerned."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/49110775

Life in the Fast Lane

The Green Team

Nurse Wyvern 

I have a full time job on an oil platform in the North Sea as a Nurse (platform medic) that has been documented here in the past, but I also have a part time job as an Occupational Heath Nurse Advisor, where I advise on how to support individuals who have illness or conditions that may  affect them in the work areas, and help those who are off work get the right support and ease them back to work when deemed fit to return. 

Occupational Health is the interface between people and their working environment, where potential hazards are assessed and mitigated, exposures are measured, and preventive measures are designed and imposed. 

These two sides of my professional life came together recently when I was asked to give a talk on offshore occupational health to the ‘Association of Occupational Health Nurse Practitioners’ study day. 

The Association has a facebook forum that it uses as its main information and communications focal point and I am registered there under my female identity, as I don’t have an account in my male persona.

This has often been of benefit to the Association as I am able to advise on transgender issues that some practitioners come in contact with in their work areas and professional practice. 

So I planed to give the presentation en-fem, as they were expecting to see me there from the forum advertising. 

Bleak Spot Camping 

The Study Day  

The study day was arranged by one of my collogues who is the occupational nurse manager for Williams F1 - a formula one race team, and had secured four other speakers who were to give a discussion on various topics such as travel medicine, the legal aspects of Occ Health update and review new research. 

My day stated out well as I had driven from home in my Landover and found a lovely spot to camp nearby with some stunning views over the country side next to some racing horse gallops. 

After a light breakfast I dressed in some grey wide legged trousers with a wool grey roll neck top, purple shoes and my favorite Jager short purple jacket.  

The impression I wanted to give was ‘smart professional’. 

The short drive to the F1 headquarters was fine, but I had to negotiate the early morning rush hour traffic, but eventually found the main gate and was ushered in and directed to the car parking area. 

The site was large and impressive. The buildings were all ultra modern with great views, and the car park was full of interesting cars of all makes, becoming of the workforce intertwined with speed and technology  - my Landover was the polar opposite of the general theme ! 

I was met at the conference center by one of the hospitality team and directed to the area where we were the event was bing held and met some of the others who were attending. 

It was lovely to put faces to the names of people I have been working with on the forum site for several years and be accepted as one of the peers. 

My Fem side was not even blinked at when introduced, it was just taken as part of me and totally accepted. 

.... and still going after an hour ! 

Me waffling again....

My Mumble - Death By Powerpoint! 

The event stared with an introduction from the people running the study day and a quick run round of introductions from the attendees. There were about 50 people in the audience and I had not met anyone face to face before. 

My presentation was due to be the last one as it was the longest. I had made it applicable to the venue by using the F1 team as a link between the oil and gas industry and the use of hydrocarbon in the production of products that are in common day usage. 

I stared the talk by apologizing that I wasn’t as glamorous as  Danny LaRue, as funny as Eddy Isard, or as sharp as Lilly Savage – this seemed to break the ice and I explained my TG status, offering to talk to anyone about TG issues if they ever had the need. 

The talk went well and I had lots of interesting questions and positive comments fed back to me about the subject matter. Sadly I overran my 40 mins to end up at an hour .. so have apologised to the organiser as she was supposed to be giving a talk after mine which she canceled politely saying that mine was more interesting than hers would have been anyway !  (I felt very guilty and apologised several times after !) 

Myself with the formula E race car 

Geek Outing 

At the end of the day we were able to visit the heritage museum that was in the building and one of the team pit crew was able to show us around the cars on show. 

These included several world championship winning cars from the past, right up to the previous years racing car and the development cars from the new E series.

I was able to let my inner geek out and enjoy seeing all the history and technology that was on display, and tap into the mind of information that the guide was able to impart on us about the cars and the drivers who used them. 

Some of the championship winning cars from over the years 

After a quick visit to the shop to buy some gifts for the lads on my platform, I made my way out and headed south at a rather sedate pace compared to the cars in the site! 

On the way out of the gate, I came nose to nose with the large HGV lorries that were returning the race team from the Monaco Grand Prix that had been ran a couple of days previously – it was a very impressive convoy!! 

More !!

I have been asked to do another talk in the future on a relevant topic .… but I may have to be more critical on my time keeping before I get to go back ! 

Please note - my presentation has nothing to do with the teams fortunes in the current season.... hope that they get to win some points this year  ......

Hugs Dawn 

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