Paula Radcliffe: Transgender runners who identify as female get ‘unfair’ advantage to qualify for Boston Marathon

Paula Radcliffe has waded into a row over the entry requirements for transgender athletes at one of the world’s most elite marathons, suggesting it is “unfair” on women.

Responding to a story about several transgender runners in last year’s Boston marathon, she wrote: “The serious significance here is worse because Boston is notoriously difficult to qualify for.

“Opening women’s (qualifying times) up to any male who ‘self-identifies’ as female is unfair because the end result will be that female (Boston qualifying times) are made harder due to the added numbers achieving them.”

One user hit back that “people should be able to identify how they chose”, to which Radcliffe replied: “They can identify however they want to. Just not in a sporting competition where they can deprive a woman of a qualifying place.

“This is because qualifying times for women are slower than for men since biological men are capable of running faster than biological women.”

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/04/07/paul-radcliffe-transgender-runners-identify-female-get-unfair/

[category global, inequity, trans]  

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