Trans Researcher Says Quiet Part Out Loud About Male Athletes In Women's Sports

At a recent international sports governance conference in Finland, one speaker inadvertently highlighted the sheer entitlement of males who are fighting to compete in women's sports.

The viral moment came during the "Who Has the Right to Compete?" panel at the Play the Game 2025 conference in Tampere, where five speakers — including researcher Joanna Harper, a trans-identifying male — debated the inclusion of transgender athletes in sex-based sports categories.

(Play the Game 2025)

One of the more reasonable proposals came from British philosophy professor Jon Pike, who suggested a simple, logical solution: keep the men's category as is, preserve the women's category for biological females, and create an "open" category for everyone else.

But Harper didn’t like that idea.

"The open category will be 99% cisgender male," Harper argued. "And so what you are asking is for trans women to compete in a category which is virtually entirely cis men, and just call it an open category. 

"Most trans women, myself included, would rather quit their sport than to compete in such a category."

So we’re just saying the quiet part out loud now, huh?

What Harper is essentially saying: I’m a male. And if you won’t let me compete against females — where I might have an unfair advantage — I’d rather not compete at all.

And that’s supposed to be a compelling argument?

Joanna Harper: ‘Most Trans Women Would Rather Quit Their Sport’ Than Compete Against Men

Harper’s comments undercut the entire argument trans activists have been making for years. The narrative has always been that "trans people just want to play," and that banning them from the female category would cruelly exclude them from the joy of sport.

But that’s not what Harper said. Harper didn’t say, "We just want a chance to compete." Harper said: If I can’t compete in the category I want — the one that gives me a biological edge and validates my gender identity — I’ll walk away.

Demonstrators rally during a Trans Pride protest march in the UK.

(Wiktor Szymanowicz/Future Publishing via Getty Images)

An open category would allow everyone to compete. The female category would remain fair and protected for females only. If the "open" category ends up being 99% male, as Harper suggests, it’s because women prefer to stay in the female category, where they feel it's a fair and safe playing field.

Yet Harper frames that as injustice. 

"What you are asking," Harper said, "is for trans women to compete in a category which is virtually entirely cis men." 

Yes, because trans-identifying males are, in fact, biological men.

Yet Harper shows no concern whatsoever for the females forced to compete against men, regardless of how they identify.

RELATED: British Professor Obliterates Trans Athlete Argument In Two Minutes Flat

No other athlete in sports can demand to compete in a category they don’t qualify for — and then threaten to quit if they don’t get their way. Imagine a 35-year-old showing up to an under-18 tournament and saying, "Let me in or I’m out of here!" Or a 300-pound sumo wrestler demanding to enter a lightweight boxing match because it feels more affirming.

This wouldn't even be up for debate. And neither should the protection of the female category.

People hold Save Girls Sports signs in protest of a transgender athlete competing in the girls' CIF State Track and Field Championships.

(Photo by Kirby Lee/Getty Images)

It's actually very simple. If you want to compete in women’s sports, you need to be a woman. Otherwise, the men's and open categories are right there. The opportunity is still available. The only thing missing is the unfair advantage.

And that’s really what this has been about all along.