Even before British Rowing announced they would reserve the women’s category for those born female, US Rowing looked pretty bad. Now, by comparison to the Brits, US Rowing is flying the neon pink and blue flag of high misogyny. On our benighted side of the rowing pond, the women’s category is for anyone who identifies as a woman (no hormonal or surgical requirements for youth or master’s, testosterone suppression for collegiate and international rowers), and for people who actually are women. Essentially anyone can compete in the women’s category. But, says US Rowing, in the mixed boat category, 50% of the rowers must be natal women. Real women. If they didn’t specify real women, a mixed boat could consist of all men, 50% of whom identify as women. Such a boat would have an advantage over mixed boats that had women in it. And US Rowing knows that. US Rowing knows that trans-identified men, even those suppressing their testosterone, have a performance advantage. The men in boats with real women in them would be at a disadvantage, and we can’t have unfairness for men, so US Rowing was quick to fix that. But in the women’s category—who cares?! Women must compete against men and boys, some of whom have done nothing more than announce they are female.
“It’s the height of hypocrisy and misogyny,” said Mary O’Connor, founding member of Independent Council on Women’s Sports Rowing Chapter and Olympic rower. “US Rowing recognizes the performance advantages of men, including males who identify as women. They inferred in their policy, we need to protect fairness for men, but we don’t care about fairness for women. They only recognized the sex-based definition of women when it impacted men.”
Now let’s have a look at British Rowing’s new policy. They moved from a position in which trans-identified men could compete in the women’s category with testosterone suppression to a women’s category for only those born female, regardless of how they identify. So for those who get tripped up by media yelling that this is a blanket ban on trans rowers—the women’s category includes trans-identified women and women who identify as nonbinary. The open category welcomes anyone—men, women, trans-identified men, and trans-identified women who use testosterone. Mixed boats require 50% of the rowers be natal women.
“British Rowing applied the sex-based definition of woman across all ages and competitive categories, protecting females at every level,” O’Connor said.
British Rowing followed the lead of World Athletics, World Aquatics, and UCI (cycling) in protecting the women’s category, but went a step further. Those big three governing bodies stipulate that a person be born female or not have gone through male puberty. So, for example, it would still be possible for a boy who started taking puberty blockers before puberty to compete in the women’s category in swim events.
“British Rowing’s policy is landmark because it also protects girls” O’Connor said. “There is plenty of data that shows physical advantage occurs pre-puberty. Sex differences, performance advantages, begin in the womb, and these differences are not solely driven by testosterone. This is real leadership by British Rowing. They’re saying, we recognize the biology, that performance advantages begin even before puberty. So, the women’s category is for those assigned—I prefer observed—female at birth. Period.”
How were the Brits able to muster the courage to protect a women’s category (it’s insane that one would need to say a women’s category is for women, but here we are)? Even though, in doing so, they split from World Rowing’s policy that allows trans-identified men to compete with testosterone suppression, a protocol that has been proven ineffective at eliminating male advantage?
“It’s my perception there’s been more publicity, more education by the UK media regarding how it’s discriminatory to women to allow males to compete in the women’s category,” O’Connor said. “There have been more articles than in the US recognizing the fundamental importance of sex for fairness in sports.”
British Rowing reviewed their trans policy in 2021 and included Stonewall, Mermaids, and at least three Diversity, Equity and Inclusion groups in the decision-making process, as well as Fair Play For Women. In the end, they stuck by the testosterone suppression scheme. What seems to have flipped the switch toward making the women’s category for natal women only in this year’s review of policy was a survey sent out to their members. 4,591 members responded. Since neither the science nor the stances of stakeholders like Stonewall changed in the intervening years, the members must have felt pretty strongly about ring-fencing a women’s only category. And British Rowing listened to their members. Funny how that is. When only trans lobbyists and DEI groups are consulted, the resulting policy includes trans-identified males in the women’s category. When members are consulted, the women’s category is reserved for women only. For example, after a multi-year detour through trans hegemony, UCI queried their members and found that a staggering 93% wanted the women’s category for women only. And now it is.
Now let’s have a look at how US Rowing is able to maintain its blatantly misogynistic policy. When O’Connor and ICONS Rowing heard that US Rowing was going to revisit their eligibility policy in 2022, they approached the board of directors of US Rowing to ask if they could provide input. O’Connor and ICONS Rowing did have a virtual meeting with the board chair and believe that the US Rowing board was very aware of their concerns. But that’s as far as they went. In the end, the board elected to protect fairness only for men.
“US Rowing did a survey of rowers. We asked if we could be part of the group who would create the survey,” O’Connor said. “We were not given that opportunity. The survey was sent by a group called True Inclusion. We had serious concerns about how the survey questions were stated; we thought they might be biased toward inclusion of trans-identified men in the women’s category. And that was our assessment after we individually responded to the survey.”
The results of that survey were never published. In a classic move to release board members from the responsibility of voting on the new policy, US Rowing said there were no substantive changes, so the policy could be adopted without voting on it.
“We at ICONS Rowing absolutely disagreed with their assertion that there were no substantive changes. The fact that a male could self ID into youth or masters categories was a significant change.”
And US Rowing’s policy has already reaped what it sowed. Trans-identified male Willow Arts finished sixth in the Women’s Open A Singles Championship race in Indianapolis. In 2021, he took home the silver in a women’s championship.
Adding to the inherent unfairness of having to compete against boys and men, US Rowing’s travel policy guidance is a safeguarding nightmare.
When on the road:
US Rowing recommends all athletes be assigned to share accommodations based on their gender identity, with a recognition that privacy may be important to athletes of all genders, including transgender, cisgender, and non-binary athletes.
US Rowing has had a rocky history with regard to protecting girls from sexual abuse, and now a trans-identified boy may be bunking up with teenage girls. O’Connor explained exactly what that means.
“When my children traveled [for rowing] in high school they slept two to a double bed. What parent is going to be comfortable with their daughter sleeping next to a teenage boy who identifies as a girl? US Rowing’s travel policy guidance is eroding parents’ right, their obligation, to protect their children from such situations. This failure to protect girls from essentially being coerced into accepting a male bodied person in their private spaces, because the national governing body of rowing in the United States recommends accommodation based on gender identity, is a complete abrogation of leadership.”
US Rowing’s policy that allows men and boys to self-identify into the women’s category (except, of course, when real women are needed to make a mixed boat mixed) prioritizes the rights of trans-identified men over the rights of women to fair competition, safety and privacy. It’s egregiously discriminatory, misogynistic, and disrespectful to women and girls. That was never a good look, even when other countries were doing it. And now, US Rowing needs to defend its position.
US Rowing did not respond to my request for comment.
Great article! Meanwhile in the US... trans woman disc golfer is going around to different states to sue for discrimination. (S)he doesn’t even live in MN! Says that it isn’t about the prizes (money) but the lawyer says it’s specifically about the prize money.
MN disc golf organization stops all tournaments for fear of liability. So now everyone is losing out. What a mess.
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2023/08/11/trans-pro-disc-golfer-suing-sports-top-league-for-discrimination-in-minnesota
That US Rowing mixed boat exception was such a tell. The policy was proof positive that men run rowing for other men (whether they are trans or non-trans identifying). The British Rowing policy is great, especially for junior girls. I mean, when you have a baby and you need to assess his or her health, there is a male growth chart and a female growth chart. There’s a reason for this.