Female Olympians call on Scottish Parliament to protect female sports, Edinburgh, 16 June 2022 19 images Created 17 Jun 2022
**FOR TV VIDEO CLIP OF THE WHOLE PRESS CONFERENCE SEE BELOW LINK**
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEOG1j1eOPQ
Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. 16 June 2022.
Female Olympians Sharron Davies and Mara Yamauchi today visited Edinburgh to call on members of the Scottish Parliament to ensure the integrity of female sporting categories.
The Scottish Parliament is currently considering draft legislation – the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill – which will allow individuals to change the sex recorded on their birth certificate by simply making a statutory declaration. Currently, someone seeking a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) needs to have a diagnosis of gender dysphoria and to have lived in their ‘acquired gender’ for two years.
The Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice (EHRCJ) Committee took oral evidence on the impact of the draft bill on sports on 24 May from sportscotland and Leap Sport Scotland.
Ms Davies and Ms Yamauchi were invited to Scotland by campaign group For Women Scotland (FWS), and accompanied by a representative of Fair Play For Women.
Susan Smith, For Women Scotland, said:
“We were disappointed that MSPs did not seek evidence from female athletes during their oral evidence session on sport last month. Male puberty confers lifelong physical advantage and the inclusion of male athletes in the female category is disastrous for women. We hope MSPs will listen to Ms Davies and Ms Yamauchi’s concerns, and take them into account as they continue to scrutinise the draft Bill. Whilst the Equality Act 2010 has a clear exception for sports, we know that many elite and grassroots sports have adopted policies which allow male athletes to compete in the female category. We also know that participation rates for women in sport are lower than they are for their male counterparts. We should not be putting any further barriers in the way of improving participation levels.”
Fiona McAnena, Fair Play For Women, said:
“Last year, sportscotland endorsed new guidance on transgender inclusion which said allowing trans athletes into female sport is not fair for females. Governing bodies for sport are now reviewing their policies and we expect them to reinstate a female category based on birth sex. The sports councils suggested other options for transgender inclusion in sport such as Open categories. We need to be fair to females and to trans people. That means ensuring trans inclusion but keeping female sport for those who have not gone through male puberty.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEOG1j1eOPQ
Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. 16 June 2022.
Female Olympians Sharron Davies and Mara Yamauchi today visited Edinburgh to call on members of the Scottish Parliament to ensure the integrity of female sporting categories.
The Scottish Parliament is currently considering draft legislation – the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill – which will allow individuals to change the sex recorded on their birth certificate by simply making a statutory declaration. Currently, someone seeking a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) needs to have a diagnosis of gender dysphoria and to have lived in their ‘acquired gender’ for two years.
The Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice (EHRCJ) Committee took oral evidence on the impact of the draft bill on sports on 24 May from sportscotland and Leap Sport Scotland.
Ms Davies and Ms Yamauchi were invited to Scotland by campaign group For Women Scotland (FWS), and accompanied by a representative of Fair Play For Women.
Susan Smith, For Women Scotland, said:
“We were disappointed that MSPs did not seek evidence from female athletes during their oral evidence session on sport last month. Male puberty confers lifelong physical advantage and the inclusion of male athletes in the female category is disastrous for women. We hope MSPs will listen to Ms Davies and Ms Yamauchi’s concerns, and take them into account as they continue to scrutinise the draft Bill. Whilst the Equality Act 2010 has a clear exception for sports, we know that many elite and grassroots sports have adopted policies which allow male athletes to compete in the female category. We also know that participation rates for women in sport are lower than they are for their male counterparts. We should not be putting any further barriers in the way of improving participation levels.”
Fiona McAnena, Fair Play For Women, said:
“Last year, sportscotland endorsed new guidance on transgender inclusion which said allowing trans athletes into female sport is not fair for females. Governing bodies for sport are now reviewing their policies and we expect them to reinstate a female category based on birth sex. The sports councils suggested other options for transgender inclusion in sport such as Open categories. We need to be fair to females and to trans people. That means ensuring trans inclusion but keeping female sport for those who have not gone through male puberty.
