Cricket Australia’s transgender agenda is a threat to women’s sport

Cricket Australia have announced their intention to include ‘people with affirmed gender identity in the game at every level’ which they consider a ‘major step to ensure inclusiveness is at the heart of Australian cricket’.

In other words, women who were born men will be able to compete in a formerly exclusively women’s sport. From the point of view of transwomen, this is progress, but to women in sport, this is a threat.

Kevin Roberts, CEO of Cricket Australia said:

‘It doesn’t make any sense that today, people are discriminated against, harassed or excluded, because of who they are.’  

The problem here is that exclusivity in sport makes perfect sense and exists for obvious reasons. We exclude by sex, disability and age because otherwise those competitors whose ability is different due to biological factors would never win or compete fairly. We exclude in competitive sport all the time for exactly that reason.

It should not be considered discrimination or ‘transphobic’ to state the simple fact that it makes no sense to segregate sport based on gender identity. A cricketer’s bowling, batting and fielding abilities are not affected by their gender identity. Their potential as athletes is predicated on their sex. So, Cricket Australia can pat themselves on their backs for their inclusivity, but one has to wonder how women in Australian cricket, and indeed competing nations, feel about this.

Generally, males are stronger than females. This is not controversial. We have always known this about our species. Males can run faster, throw further, and lift heavier. They outperform females by 30% when throwing balls and by 10% on the running track. The record for bowling speeds in the male category is 100.23 mph compared to 77.6mph in the female category.

A 14-year-old school boy holds a record for 100m sprint which beats the female 100m Olympic champion Elaine Thompson’s record.  The US women’s soccer team lost a game against the FC Dallas under 15s academy team in 2017 and two years later won the women’s world cup.

The gap in performance has exactly nothing to do with gender identity. Males have around 40% more muscle mass and 40% less body fat. Their muscle is denser with more and larger fibres. They have larger hearts and lungs which feed their muscles more oxygen. They are taller and they have longer limbs. Their longer arms and greater reach will generate more speed and power on a cricket ball. Their longer legs and narrower pelvises make faster and more efficient strides.

This gap in performance is unassailable which is why we have a protected female category in sports. It creates a level playing field where females with the same potential can compete fairly. With the introduction of trans women, there is no longer a level playing field.

Boys and girls diverge physically early in life and its when they hit puberty that boys open up a significant physical gap. Inherent male advantages are not removed during hormone treatment. The facts of biology, such as the musculoskeletal architecture of males, cannot be removed or wished away. Transwomen do not get shorter or lose bone mass. After transition they retain a significantly larger muscle area compared to females.

This is the problem. Opposing discrimination against trans people is societal progress, but “inclusion” in female sport is not. Physically, transwomen are males with a feminine gender identity who undertake medical procedures and lifestyle choices to be perceived as female. When it comes to elite sport, we cannot just ignore biological facts to be ‘inclusive’. Women should not be considered acceptable collateral damage in the quest for inclusivity.