Lina von Petersdorff
Human Rights Studies, Lund University
The number of openly outed trans individuals in society and in sport is increasing and can be expected to keep growing. The sporting domain is singled out as special in terms of trans rights, as it is solely based on physical characteristics. Trans people in sport have become a subject of heated debates. However, the field of human rights has so far neglected the topic.
Analysing 16 transgender eligibility policies of different international sports federations, this article makes the case for a human rights-based approach towards participation in competitive sports in accordance with a person’s gender identity. It does so by focussing on specific human rights and utilising feminist theories. The analysis identifies that the policies frame transgender athletes as a “problem”. The use of language and, in particular concepts, play a crucial role in the policies. Therefore, the argument is made for redefining the concepts of sex and gender in the context of sport. Overall, the article finds the right to non-discrimination, the right to work and the right to sport to be relevant in this area. It argues for a rethinking of human rights to change the strict binary categorisation in sport based on sex.
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LINA VON PETERSDORFF is a recent graduate of the Master’s degree programme in Human Rights Studies at Lund University. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Political Science from Christian-Albrechts-Universität Kiel. Her research interests include human rights, gender and queer studies, particularly in the context of sport.
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