AUCKLAND • Former Olympic weightlifter Tracey Lambrechs has said females are being told to "be quiet" when they complain about the fairness of transgender athlete Laurel Hubbard competing in women's competitions.
New Zealander Hubbard is on track to become the first transgender athlete to compete at an Olympics, after the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) modified qualifying requirements for the Tokyo Games on Wednesday.
The 43-year-old still has to satisfy the New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC) of her fitness and performance standards before selection for the team.
But the prospect that she may be able to compete in Tokyo has already raised hackles.
"I'm quite disappointed, quite disappointed for the female athlete who will lose out on that spot," Lambrechs, who won a bronze medal for New Zealand at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, told TVNZ.
"We're all about equality for women in sport but right now, that equality is being taken away from us.
"I've had female weightlifters come up to me and say, 'What do we do? This isn't fair, what do we do?' Unfortunately, there's nothing we can do because every time we voice it we get told to be quiet."
Hubbard, 43, competed in men's weightlifting competitions before transitioning in 2013. Australia's weightlifting federation sought to block her from competing at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games but organisers rejected the move despite the opposition.
She has been eligible to compete in the Olympics since 2015, when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) issued guidelines allowing any transgender athlete to compete as a woman - provided their testosterone levels are below 10 nanomoles per litre for at least 12 months before their first competition.
Many scientists have criticised these guidelines, saying they do little to mitigate the biological advantages of those who have gone through puberty as males, including bone and muscle density.
In a statement on Thursday, the IOC said that while committed to inclusion, it is reviewing its guidelines to take into account the "perceived tension between fairness/safety and inclusion/non-discrimination".
The exact criteria for transgender participation in elite sport is determined by the international federations and some have taken a different interpretation of the guidelines. World Rugby banned transgender athletes from the pro women's game last year for safety reasons.
REUTERS
