Another thing that surprised me to learn was that gender verification tests were developed based on purely science. The Barr body test determined whether someone was a woman based on one small dark spot that showed up if someone was female. This is very interesting to me because how can one small dark spot on a test decide whether someone is female and can or cannot participate in competitive athletics? I also learned that sex is defined by chromosomes. If someone has XX chromosomes they are said to be female and if someone has XY chromosomes they are said to be a male. This really surprised me because I feel that this idea is too simple because these things don’t always define what someone’s gender may be. It is stated that science proved that these tests aren’t always accurate and someone can still be female if they don’t have a dark spot show up and they have XY chromosomes instead of XX. These tests are overly simple and don’t consider females who have differences in these tests which creates inequality. Learning that a hurdler named Maria lost everything due to these tests broke my heart. She lost her scholarship, her boyfriend and basically her life. She tried forever to fight this issue but did not want to interview for this podcast because she said she has said it all before and sadly nothing has changed. It is very surprising to see how many athletes have fought against these tests but nothing has permanently changed to create equality yet.

Finally one very interesting thing that the title of this article alludes to, is the card that verified females were given after they had “passed” a gender verification test. This really surprised me because male athletes did not have to carry around a card explaining to the world that they are a “real” man. This shows outright discrimination for female athletes and shows the systemic discrimination that females have undergone in society for as long as many people can remember.

Overall, this podcast really made me think about the issue of gender verification and made me realize that so many amazing athletes are being discriminated against and left out of competitions all because their bodies test outside of the preconceived norms society has put in place. I feel so confused about why this occurs because I think any and all females should be allowed to participate in female sporting events.

Another significant Case I would add to this timeline is the case of Polish Olympic sprinter Ewa Klobukowska in 1967. I learned about Ewa in a previous sociology course. Ewa was the first athlete to fail a chromosome test causing her to be banned from competition. This is important to add to the timeline because she was the first woman to be banned from competing. Her case is also important because it highlights that there were flaws in chromosome tests, meaning that many women could be potentially banned for no reason at all.

These are my responses and they reflect my understanding of gender-coding in sports. Whilst I do understand that all sports have the potential to be unisex I find that they tend to be associated with either the male or female binary and my classmates responses solidify my understanding.

Sports like hockey, basketball, powerlifting, and football have traditionally been seen as male-dominated. Historically, male professional teams in these sports existed long before female teams, and in some case like football a predominantly female league still doesn’t exist. From my own experience playing sports, I’ve observed how underrepresented women are in these male-coded sports. For example, during high school, there was only one girl on our football team. Even though many other women enjoyed the sport, they felt it was perceived as a male sport meaning they weren’t welcome to play.

I view sports like volleyball and soccer as more gender-neutral. I believe this because I’ve seen both men and women actively participating in these sports. Growing up, I often played soccer against boys, which reinforced my perception of it as a neutral sport.

Finally, I see both softball and gymnastics as female-coded sports. These sports are often advertised with only females and in places like high school and university there is often only females participating in these sports. For gymnastics especially females are often displayed to promote the sport and any males who participate are seen as more feminine.

I also feel that this issue is often overblown by politicians and influencers like most issues in society. Politicians and influencers are often seeking to please the greatest number of people, and in this circumstance the majority of people believe that transgender women competing in women’s sports is wrong. Politicians and influencers have the ability to hold power over the majority of people therefore they create strong opinions that are often controversial. In the case of this issue I do feel like people of power have gone over the top to create a problem out of a small issue.

In all I do feel that Lia Thomas has a solid point in what she says here, but I feel that it is very important to gather more evidence to ensure that policies in sports are based on fairness and inclusivity.

I for sure agree with what Katie Barnes has stated here, in fact I have been thinking this throughout the entirety of this module. Sports are not fair. In all sports, especially elite sports, natural talent and skill, access to resources, and systemic inequalities will often always create disparities that are way beyond the control of an individual athlete. Fairness in sports is very similar to fairness in life. There is always going to be someone who is wealthier than others, there is always going to be someone with better health, and there is always going to be someone who is just naturally more skilled. Fairness is simply just not a reality in life or in sports. For example there is always going to be an athlete who can afford expensive training facilities and personal trainers. This athlete may not be more skilled than someone who can’t afford these things but they will be able to increase their potential because they have access to these resources. In my own experience playing high school basketball, I’ve seen teammates succeed over others with the same skill level because they had access to resources such as private coaching and rep teams outside of school. Even though these teammates had very similar talent they did not have similar opportunities. I feel that this is unfair but it is never questioned.

In high level sports there are a lot of hidden inequalities that create unfair circumstances as well. For example, in the NHL some referees are better than others and some ice rinks are in better shape than others. This gives certain teams unfair advantages. This example shows how unnoticed unfairness is and shows how we accept it without even knowing it.

Sports are always going to have an aspect of unfairness. A team is always going to have some kind of advantage over another and an individual is always going to be better at a sport than another individual. I feel that unfairness in sport is inevitable.