Get the words right

Warped reporting:

Transgender athletes face increased restrictions ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympics compared to previous rules, as it was recently decided that they must have completed their transition before the age of 12 to avoid unfair advantages.

Transgender athletes face greater hurdles in qualifying for the upcoming Olympic Games, which will take place in Paris from 26 July to 11 August. It has been mandated that the transition must be completed before the age limit of 12, as doing so after that age could give an advantage over cisgender female competitors. 

That is, male athletes who cheat by claiming to be women will find it harder to cheat now that they are required to have completed “transition” before age 12.

Previously, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had issued guidelines that allowed any transgender athlete to compete as a woman as long as their testosterone levels were below 10 nanomoles per litre for at least 12 months before their first competition. However, the current requirements have been changed to avoid disadvantaging cisgender women.

Women. The requirements have been changed to avoid blatantly cheating women.

Unsurprisingly, transgender athletes, who previously qualified to compete against cisgender female athletes, have not welcomed the new protections for female athletes. It appears that these restrictions are based on the premise of not disadvantaging cisgender women.

Male athletes who want to cheat women have not welcomed the new protections for female athletes, because they prevent the male athletes from cheating women. The point of the restrictions is to prevent male athletes from cheating women.

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