that's a really simple, elegant solution ive never considered before
we should really be doing that. it's so obvious, it's already done in fighting sports. what the hell are humans thinking, buncha dumb fucking monkeys i tell you what
Weight classes exist in martial arts, boxing, and weight lifting, yeah. But men and women also differ by muscle mass as a percentage of total mass. Testosterone (whether endogenous or exogenous) during development and in general means more muscle, less fat. In other words, on average, men will still be significantly stronger than women in the same weight class.
Hypothetically, you could design some complex system controlling for hormones, muscle percentage, and total mass as a replacement for mere sex/gender... but that's overmedicalization. Professional sports are overmedicalized already, with tests for doping and the athletes taking every kind of supplement and drug that's not yet banned... but you're not gonna subject every kid in school to a series of blood tests. That'd be its own kind of fucked up.
I think whatever division exists in sports for most people should be based on social distinctions, not biological ones. Let trans women compete with cis women - trans people are under 1% of the population anyway. Let enbies be with whoever they want. Society shouldn't be segregated by gender, but locker rooms and certain medical practices are - people are more comfortable with their own gender sometimes. It's an exceptional circumstance, not total segregation.
that's a really simple, elegant solution ive never considered before
we should really be doing that. it's so obvious, it's already done in fighting sports. what the hell are humans thinking, buncha dumb fucking monkeys i tell you what
Weight classes exist in martial arts, boxing, and weight lifting, yeah. But men and women also differ by muscle mass as a percentage of total mass. Testosterone (whether endogenous or exogenous) during development and in general means more muscle, less fat. In other words, on average, men will still be significantly stronger than women in the same weight class.
Hypothetically, you could design some complex system controlling for hormones, muscle percentage, and total mass as a replacement for mere sex/gender... but that's overmedicalization. Professional sports are overmedicalized already, with tests for doping and the athletes taking every kind of supplement and drug that's not yet banned... but you're not gonna subject every kid in school to a series of blood tests. That'd be its own kind of fucked up.
I think whatever division exists in sports for most people should be based on social distinctions, not biological ones. Let trans women compete with cis women - trans people are under 1% of the population anyway. Let enbies be with whoever they want. Society shouldn't be segregated by gender, but locker rooms and certain medical practices are - people are more comfortable with their own gender sometimes. It's an exceptional circumstance, not total segregation.