Sports League Rejects Transgender Athlete’s Claim to Female Weightlifting Records

transgender weightlifter, Mary Gregory
Instagram
Neil Munro

A weightlifting league has revoked awards to a transgender weightlifter who claimed to have broken several women’s weightlifting records.

“Our rules, and the basis of separating genders for competition, are based on physiological classification rather thana identification,” said a statement from Paul Bossi, president of 100% RAW Powerlifting Federation. Bossi continued:

On the basis of all information presented to the Board of Directors for this particular case, the conclusion made, is that the correct physiological classification is male … Since the lifter’s gender classification for the purpose of our rules is not consistent with female, no female records will be broken by these lifts.

The biology-based reversal was largely ignored by leading transgender activists, partly because few voters believe the transgender ideology’s claim that sexual discrimination — not biology — explains the different physical strength of men and women.

Instead, leading transgender activists loudly argued that racism helps to explain the exclusion of South African runner Caster Semenya from women’s athletic competitions.

Semenya is not transgender but is a very rare “intersex” person who has male genes and internal male sexual organs and, therefore, a much higher level of testosterone than female athletes. On May 1, an international sports authority conditionally excluded her from competitions because of her testosterone advantage. In response, Chase Strangio, an advocate at the ACLU tweeted:

“TERF” means “Transgender-Exclusionary Radical Feminists,” and it is aimed at women who say biology determines whether a person is a man or a woman, not a person’s feelings of “gender identity.” Transgender activists say a person’s sex should be determined by his or her “gender identity.”

The transgender weightlifter, Mary Gregory, had touted the apparent wins on April 28 and 29.

View this post on Instagram

What a day, 9 for 9! Masters world squat record, open world bench record, masters world dl record, and masters world total record! Still processing, full meet recap to come a bit later but I do want to thank a few people!💜 – From our initial consultation I told @savvysavit that I wanted to cut to the 82.5kg class, go 9 for 9, and set some records- we did it!!! I don't think she was happy with me cutting but she was there offering her support. When I needed a pick me up or advice she was there! Thank you coach!💜 – A huge thank you to @raw_powerlifting_federation_ , from the bottom of my heart! As a transgender lifter I was unsure what to expect going into this meet and everyone- all the spotters, loaders, referees, staff, meet director, all made me welcome and treated me as just another female lifter- thank you! And thanks to all the fans in the audience who cheered me on and congratulated me!💜 – Thank @rrrrachele for making the trip out to support me today, video my lifts, and cheer me on!💜 – And thank you to all the peeps on Instagram who reached out to offer your support!💜 – Now for 🍷 and 🍕!!! – #transgenderwoman#sharetheplatform#transrightsarehumanrights#lgbtq#bemoreawesome#upliftandliftheavy#morefemalestrength#richmondbalance#liftlunchlearnrva#squat#bench#deadlift

A post shared by Mary Gregory (@75marylifts) on

Prior to the competition, managers at the 100% Raw Powerlifting had been developing a policy that would survive lawsuits by transgender activists.

On Facebook, Bossi described how Gregory’s weightlifting awards were revoked:

On Friday April 26th, I received a phone call from a Meet Director letting me know that we might possibly have a Transgender lifter competing on Saturday April 27th at the USA Master Nationals. I asked if this lifter had stated anything to him in regards to being a Transgender lifter and the Meet Director indicated no. I asked what category was checked off on the entry form and he stated female. I informed him to let her lift as it would be more insulting to ask a lifter such a personal question, especially if the lifter did not offer to disclose this information.

On Saturday April 27th , the lifter exceeded the current female World Records in this lifter’s age and weight category. This automatically calls for Drug Testing protocol which takes place at the end of every event. The Drug Testing Coordinator for this event performed the drug test at which time it was revealed that this female lifter was actually a male in the process of becoming a Transgender female.

…

On Monday April 29th , I the President and the Board of Directors met to discuss this matter. As an aside, the Board of Directors has been working on a Transgender policy. This new policy had not been completed prior to this event occurring.

…

Everyone has commented on the posts that this lifter posted on their Instagram page. It is very unfortunate that the news media, social media and so many others have made comments before the true facts could be released.

Facts: 1. The lifter identifies as female, and so entered the contest (with no prior consultation with the Meet Director or (100% RAW officials). Our rules, and the basis of separating genders for competition, are based on physiological classification rather than identification. On the basis of all information presented to the Board of Directors for this particular case, the conclusion made, is that the correct physiological classification is male.

2. Since the lifter’s gender classification for the purpose of our rules is not consistent with female, no female records will be broken by these lifts.

3. The lifter was uncontested during the event therefore no female lifters were denied a place finish. The lifter will be placed in a different category once the Transgender Division is introduced with a new policy.

4. Drug testing results have not been completed and will take about another week to come back from the lab. As a drug test failure invalidates the lifts, we will need to wait for the results of the drug tests to determine if the lifts can be counted at all under our current set of rules.

Several ordinary Americans are forming organizations to protect sports from the transgender ideology. They include Beth Stelzer, founder of Save Women’s Sports, and Jennifer Bryson, founder of Let All Play.

Polls show the transgender ideology is deeply unpopular, especially among women and parents. In 2017, former President Barack Obama told NPR that his promotion of the transgender ideology made it easier for Donald Trump to win the presidency.

Multiple polls show that most Americans wish to help and comfort people who think they are a member of the opposite sex, even as they also reject the transgender ideology’s claim that a person’s legal sex is determined by their feeling of “gender identity,” not by biology. A U.K. survey shows a similar mix of sympathy for people who say they are transgender alongside lopsided opposition to the ideology.

The transgender movement is diverse, so its different factions have competing goals and priorities. It includes sexual liberationists, progressives, feminists who wish to blur distinctions between the two sexes, and people who glamorize the distinctions between the two sexes. It includes high-profile children, people who are trying to live as members of the opposite sex, troubled teenage girls trying to flee womanhood, and people trying to “detransition” back to their sex. It also includes men who demand sex from lesbians, masculine autogynephiles who say are entitled to women’s rights, parents eager to support transgender claims, wealthy donors, politicians, political professionals, and revenue-seeking drug companies and medical service providers.

Transgender advocates claim that two million Americans say they are transgender to a greater or lesser extent. But very few people who describe themselves as transgender undergo cosmetic surgery of the genitals. Only about 4,118 Americans surgically altered their bodies in hospitals from 2000 to 2014 to appear like members of the opposite sex, according to a pro-transgender medical study. A Pentagon report commissioned by former Defense Secretary James Mattis said: “rates for genital surgery are exceedingly low- 2% of transgender men and 10% of transgender women.”

Yet the gender ideology is rapidly gaining power, aided by huge donations from wealthy individuals and medical companies. In Ohio, for example, in February, a judge forced parents of a teenage girl to give up custody so she can begin a lifetime of drug treatments and surgery that will allow her to appear as a male.

The progressive push to bend Americans’ attitudes and their male-and-female civic society around the idea of “gender identity” has already attacked and cracked many of the popular social rules that help Americans manage the cooperation and competition among and between complementary, different, and equal men and women.

These pro-gender claims have an impact on different-sex bathrooms, shelters for battered women, sports  leagues for girls, hiking groups for boys, K-12 curricula, university speech codes, religious freedoms, free speech, the social status of women, parents’ rights in childrearing, children’s safety, practices to help teenagers, health outcomes, women’s ideals of beauty, culture and civil society, scientific research, prison safety, civic ceremonies, school rules, men’s sense of masculinity, law enforcement, military culture, and children’s sexual privacy.

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