Transgender participation in sports has become a hot topic of late in the sporting world. Proponents talk of inclusion and acceptance working their way to competitive sports. Opponents point out the potential competitive issues brought about by allowing those born with the musculature and body frame of a man to compete against women on what’s supposed to be an even playing field.
In combat sports, the issue is of even greater concern since death and permanent injury are legitimate possibilities in combat. The idea of someone with the natural strength of a man battling a born female is frightening to many and a quite dangerous concept.
The World Boxing Council (WBC), however, is making the first efforts to bridge the divide when it comes to the two takes on transgender fighters in boxing. The Mexico City-based sanctioning body plans on creating a unique league in which transgender athletes can compete.
“We are going to put out a global call for those who are interested in 2023 and we will set up the protocols, start consultation, and most likely create a league and a tournament,” WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman recently told media. “It is the time to do this, and we are doing this because of safety and inclusion. We have been the leaders in rules for women’s boxing – so the dangers of a man fighting a woman will never happen because of what we are going to put in place.”
Sulaiman would continue on with the assurance that, while his organization is focused on inclusion and fairness, there is also a recognition of the dangers of a born-man fighting a born-woman. He assures that, under his supervision, no born-man will ever fight a woman.
“In boxing, a man fighting a woman must never be accepted regardless of gender change. There should be no grey area around this, and we want to go into it with transparency and the correct decisions,” Sulaiman added. “Woman to man or man to woman transgender change will never be allowed to fight a different gender by birth…. We are creating a set of rules and structures so that transgender boxing can take place, as they fully deserve to if they want to box… We’re opening a universal registration in 2023, so that we can understand the boxers that are out there – and we’ll start from there.”
The world of mixed martial arts has had isolated instances of transgender combatants among its ranks, dating back to 2012. Patricio Manuel, meanwhile, made boxing history in 2018 when he became the first transgender male fighter to compete in a professional boxing match in the United States. Manuel beat 0-4 Hugo Aguilar via unanimous decision at a Fantasy Springs Casino card in Indio, California, but has yet to make a return to the ring.
Although the WBC’s intentions may be good and the idea behind the idea is understandable, one has to question just how many transgender boxers there actually are in the world. Will there be enough to fill out its own league and weight classes within that league? Also, the logistics may be a bit tough to hammer down when it comes to organizing the actual fights. For instance, where will the fights be held? Will they take place on cards featuring non-trans boxers as well or will there be special all-trans fight cards? If the latter is the case, just how much interest would there be in such competitions? If the former is the case, how will mainstream fight fans, who can be a bit on the brutish side, interact with the transgender athletes and their supporters?
There will definitely be growing pains as the sport seeks to solve a problem that, right now isn’t a big deal, but could very well be in the future.
