Irish Rugby League Bans Transgender Athletes From Competing in Women's League
Finally, another rational, evidence based decision has been made by a sports league with regards to competitive fairness.
The Irish Rugby Football Union, also known as the IRFU, issued a statement on Wednesday saying that it will "amend its gender participation policy for rugby for the forthcoming season."
The statement says the league is making the amendment "in order to ensure fair competition and the safety of competitors." As such, they are limiting contact rugby in female competitions to those who were born female.
This new policy is based on "medical and scientific evidence" and aligns with the World Rugby League, which banned transgender athletes from competing in international events:
The report from the Irish Times begrudgingly acknowledges that "recent peer reviewed research provides evidence that there are physical differences between those people whose sex was assigned as male and those as female at birth," and that there are "Advantages in strength, stamina and physique brought about by male puberty are significant and retained even after testosterone suppression."
While this decision will only affected a small number of players, it's the only acceptable policy for women's sports leagues, especially contact sports like rugby.
It's abundantly clear that biological males have distinct, significant physical advantages over female competitors.
Forcing women to compete against males is both unfair and offensive to those who have spent their entire lives training with the expectation that they'd be able to experience a level playing field.
The absurdist push by political activists to admit transgender athletes into female sports has led to extreme disappointment and frustration, with teammates of such athletes describing them as "mentally ill" for their selfishness and lack of awareness.
As the report states, the rugby union was "obliged to take a precautionary approach with respect to playing and training in contact rugby, an approach that needs to be applied in order to ensure fair competition and the safety of competitors."
They're entirely correct; safety, respect and fair competition is needed in women's sports, and it begins with leagues acknowledging and accepting biology and common sense.