# Should a man who self-identifies as a woman be allowed to compete in Female Olympic categories? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [April 25, 2015, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-man-who-self-identifies-as-a-woman-be-allowed-to-compete-in-female-olympic-categories/718500 "2015-04-25T04:25:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 76
**Author:** ![NinthAcolyte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ninthacolyte/32/13676_2.png) [@NinthAcolyte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinthAcolyte)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2015, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-man-who-self-identifies-as-a-woman-be-allowed-to-compete-in-female-olympic-categories/718500/76 "2015-04-26T04:32:46Z")
I’m a staunch supporter of the rights of transgender individuals, but I was never really sure what to think about their status in athletic competition. Una’s article, which I have now read in its entirety, is comprehensive in its discussion of the physical changes wrought by SRS treatments - in short, they are so dramatic and, frankly, debilitating that they easily eliminate any advantage in the vast majority of transgender athletes. Sporting organizations which allow transgender persons universally require that transgender competitors undergo these treatments, and that they have legally transitioned to their correct gender. These facts demonstrate the impossibly high bar an athlete would have to clear in order to “game the system”. It is a laughable proposition that a man could simply pretend to be transgender to achieve an unfair advantage. Thank you, Una, for the excellent article. --- _[View the full topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-a-man-who-self-identifies-as-a-woman-be-allowed-to-compete-in-female-olympic-categories/718500)._