The success of Algerian boxer Imane Khelif at the Paris Olympic Games 2024 has reignited the discussion on gender inclusion in sports. EUR researcher and gender expert Åsa Ekvall explores questions about discrimination and inclusion in sport: 'It looks like we are moving towards using more height and weight categories in sport, because there are so many types of people and bodies.'
Various elite sport committees have differing ideas on what constitutes fair and unfair advantages in sports, ideas that are rarely based on scientific research and often limited to gender-specific advantages. 'We have identified over 200 generic variations that impact an athlete’s performance', gender expert Åsa Ekvall states. 'That’s why the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is advocating for sport-specific guidelines, to ensure fairness.'
Competing in women’s competitions
Algerian boxer and gold medalist Imane Khelif was born female and identifies as female. However, she made headlines last year when the International Boxing Association (IBA) disqualified her just before the World Boxing Championship finals, citing a test that allegedly showed she did not meet the criteria to compete in the women’s category. However, it was never made public what test method they used. IBA President Umar Kremlev later told Russian state media that Khelif has both X and Y chromosomes, thereby implying that Khelif might have a sex variation.
Gender expert Åsa Ekvall, along with sports philosopher Sandra Meeuwsen, has conducted research on gender inclusion in sports, commissioned by NOC*NSF (the Dutch umbrella organization for sports in the Netherlands and the Dutch Olympic Committee). Ekvall explains there are at least 42 ways to have a sex variation and that chromosomes are not the sole factor that determine a person’s sex. Additionally, she suggests that we should move away from the idea that hormones like testosterone, estrogen, and progesterone are strictly “male” or “female”, as everyone has these hormones. Beliefs that trans women or people with a sex variation should be excluded from women’s competitions are often based on ideologies about what it means to be male or female, rather than on scientific research. Therefore, there is no reason to exclude trans women who have undergone hormone replacement therapy or people with a sex variation from participating in the women’s category.
Since April 2024, the IOC no longer recognizes the IBA. The IOC only considers the gender listed on the athlete's passport and does not conduct further sex testing. However, controversy arose again during the recent Olympics after boxer Khelif defeated her opponent in 46 seconds. Ekvall attributes this to Khelif’s opponent, Angela Carini. 'The way she immediately spoke out in the media is unprofessional', said Ekvall. 'If you have issues after a match, you should first discuss them with your coach, the referee or the organisers. Besides that, nobody questioned her sex before the IBA did. Her father even forbid her to partake in boxing as a little girl because he thought it wasn’t a sport for girls.'
Western beauty standards of femininity
Another reason, according to Ekvall, is that Khelif’s appearance does not align with Western beauty standards of femininity. 'Her body is similar to that of other boxers: after all, you choose a sport that suits your physique. Assuming someone is trans or has a sex variation because of this is racist.'
According to Ekvall, the West has had a fixation on gender for centuries, dating back to the time of the ancient Greeks. 'We still believe in a binary society and view our own society and culture as the universal truth. Everything outside of that is considered strange. Most sports were created by white people who generally share the same build and physical characteristics. Therefore, white people often have an advantage. We have noticed that when a woman of colour win a sports competition over a white female athlete, people start suggesting the woman of colour doesn’t look very "feminine" and therefore maybe is not a "real" woman. That kind of controversy has never happened in reverse: nobody would suggest a white woman is not a "real" woman when they win.'
Fair or unfair advantages?
Ekvall stresses the need to look beyond sex and gender when determining whether something constitutes a fair or unfair advantage in elite level sports. 'Dutch people are the tallest people in the world. In some sports, that’s an advantage; in others, it’s a disadvantage.' Therefore, the IOC wants sport-specific guidelines to be established to identify physical advantages and disadvantages, such as weight, height, jump distance, running speed, or the number of squats one can do. 'That’s the direction we are heading in. It could potentially lead to more height and weight categories, as there are so many types and sizes of people/bodies in the world. It’s an interesting process.'
Meta study
Ekvall is currently co-writing a new research report with sports philosopher Sandra Meeuwsen for NOC*NSF. The report is a meta study, and looks at what different sciences (philosophy, social sciences, ethics) say about discrimination and inclusion in elite sports. It will be used as a basis for NOC*NSF’s policy making. The report is expected to be finished by the end of September.
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About Åsa Ekvall
Åsa Ekvall is a gender expert and gender research coordinator at ESPRIT, the Erasmus Center for Sport Integrity & Transition. She works alongside sports philosopher Sandra Meeuwsen on questions around discrimination and inclusion in sport.Ekvall completed her PhD on the relationship between gender norms on gender equality, sexuality on the one hand and different types of violence on the other. She is co-chair of AtGender, the European Association for Gender Research, Education and Documentation.
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