Transgenders take first place in US women’s cyclocross competition
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At the Chicago Cup cyclocross, two transgender people, 25-year-old Tessa Johnson and 30-year-old Evelyn Williamson, won gold and silver medals in the women’s event, according to the New York Post.
Johnson placed first in the women’s Single Speed and Cat Half categories, while Williamson placed second in the Single Speed race. The only biological woman on the podium, Allison Zmuda, won bronze in the Single Speed event.
Williamson has already competed in the women’s competition since at least 2017 and currently has 18 titles. In 2020, she took part in competitions in both men’s and women’s categories, where she took first place among women, but did not reach the top places among men.
Athletes and organizers of the Chicago Cup cyclocross were sharply criticized by former track coach Linda Blade, calling the competition “a beta male race with women competing.”
There are known cases of banning the participation of transgender athletes in competitions with women by the International Cycling Union and the World Athletics Association. The International Chess Federation has also temporarily banned players who have changed their gender from male to female from participating in women’s tournaments. The International Swimming Federation, as well as the International Skating Union, have tightened the rules for the participation of transgender athletes in competitions.
In 2021, the IOC published a set of principles for international federations on the admission of transgender athletes to competition, which noted that “any athlete who meets the eligibility criteria should compete in the gender category in which they feel best.” That same year, the first transgender athlete took part in the Olympic Games.
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