USA Boxing, the governing body that oversees amateur and Olympic boxing in the United States, has decided to let trans fighters hit female fighters under certain regulatory conditions beginning in 2024.
The organization’s “Transgender Policy” stipulates that all fighters under 18 compete according to their birth gender. However, transgender fighters over the age of 18 will be allowed to compete in the gender category of their choice as long as they follow certain regulations.
“They must meet certain criteria, including declaring their new gender identity, completing gender reassignment surgery, and regular hormone testing,” the Daily Mail reports.
“Both male and female transgender athletes must have undergone quarterly hormone testing and provided US Boxing with documentation of their hormone levels for a minimum of four years following surgery.”
Furthermore, fighters who transition from male to female “must demonstrate that their total testosterone level in serum has been below 5 nmol/L for at least 48 months prior to her first competition.
“Their total testosterone level in serum must remain below 5 nmol/L throughout the period of desired eligibility to compete in the female category.”
Without a trace of irony, USA Boxing said on Friday, “The purpose of this policy is to provide fairness and safety for all boxers.”
Svetlana Soluianova (red) of the Russian Olympic Committee exchanges punches with Virginia Fuchs of the United States during the Women’s Fly (48-51kg) on day two of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Kokugikan Arena on July 25, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (Ueslei Marcelino – Pool/Getty Images)
The regulations put in place by USA Boxing will do nothing to ensure the safety of female fighters for reasons that were already clearly established by transgender swimmer Lia Thomas. Thomas, a thoroughly mediocre male swimmer who ranked 462nd nationally in the men’s category, set records and smashed through a field of accomplished Olympic-level female swimmers in the women’s category even though he had been taking testosterone blockers for at least 18 months before the NCAAs.
Thomas beat Emma Weyant, who won a silver medal in an Olympic individual event. He beat Erica Sullivan, another Olympic silver medalist. Plus, he beat Brooke Forde, a member of the U.S. Olympic silver medal-winning team in 2020.
Thomas proved what sports scientists such as Ross Tucker have been saying: even an average male athlete on T therapy will be dominant against female athletes.
The Lia Thomas result last night is pretty straightforward – confirmation of hypothesis. Based on the physiology, it was predictable that a male athlete with sufficient base level athleticism would suppress T, retain enough physiological advantage & thus performance, to win (1/_
— Ross Tucker (@Scienceofsport) March 18, 2022
Fortunately for Emma Wyant, Brooke Forde, and Erica Sullivan, swimming is not a combat sport, and all they had to do was suffer the humiliation and embarrassment of having the governing body and society that is supposed to be there for their protection betray them by allowing a man to steal their medals. Unfortunately for the females in USA Boxing, their governing body isn’t just going to betray them. They’re going to take it to the next level by allowing men to beat them and possibly cause irreversible harm in the name of inclusion.
USA Boxing’s ruling comes despite a recent spate of incidents where female competitors have withdrawn from miu-jitsu tournaments after feeling “sincerely scared” about facing male opponents.
The North American Grappling Association has revised their gender identity policy after a 135lbs female jiu-jitsu athlete was matched to compete against a 200lbs trans-identified male.
James “Alice” McPike took home silver in the women’s category.https://t.co/NEhNZxr6iT
— REDUXX (@ReduxxMag) September 15, 2023
USA Boxing introduced its Transgender Policy after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) punted on the issue in 2021 by allowing each sport’s governing body to determine its own policies.