Olympic gold medalist in women’s 57kg boxing Lin Yu-ting (林郁婷) yesterday said she has decided not to take legal action against those who questioned her gender eligibility during the Paris Olympics.
Lin said her gold medal speaks for itself and she does not need to prove anything more to her accusers, such as the International Boxing Association (IBA).
Lin and Algerian boxer Imane Khelif were disqualified at last year’s Women’s World Championships for failing the IBA’s unspecified gender-related tests, with the association casting doubt on their gender during the Games.
Photo: AFP
Lin said she is grateful for all the support and care she has received, and that her gold medal belongs to everyone.
Gender eligibility rules in sports are complex, and should consider multiple criteria and the broader context, experts said amid the gender controversy.
Relying on a single factor, such as testosterone levels — a key criterion for eligibility in Olympic events — could be considered dogmatic, the Science Media Center Taiwan said in a press release on Thursday last week, citing experts.
It is not appropriate to use testosterone levels as a definitive criterion for determining gender, as some females have naturally high levels of the hormone, said Hsu Mei-chich (許美智), a professor at Kaohsiung Medical University’s Department of Sports Medicine.
For males, normal testosterone concentrations range from 10 to 35 nanomoles per liter (nmol/L), while for females, the normal range is lower, typically below 2.5 nmol/L, she said, adding that ranges can vary depending on the laboratory and testing methods used.
“It is crucial that any interpretation of testosterone levels should consider the individual’s overall health status and medical background,” she said.
The Olympics implemented stricter regulations regarding athletes with differences of sex development (DSD) ahead of the Paris Games, following the vote of the World Athletics Council in March last year to halve the maximum blood testosterone level for females to below 2.5 nmol/L.
However, Hsu said it was wrong to conclude that someone is not female simply based on high testosterone readings, as a 2014 study published in Clinical Endocrinology said there could be a significant overlap in testosterone concentrations between men and women.
The study of 693 athletes showed that 16.5 percent of “male” athletes had testosterone levels below the normal range, while 13.7 percent of “female” athletes had levels above the normal range, she said.
National Cheng Kung University Hospital pediatrician Tsai Meng-che (蔡孟哲) said that sexual development is very complex, because it involves diverse definitions of sex.
High testosterone levels do not necessarily indicate that a person is male or that banned substances are being used, as people with androgen resistance might have high testosterone, but still be anatomically female, he said.
“Based on my training as a physician, unless people choose to disclose their condition, they are just like any other person to me, not patients with chromosomal abnormalities or with DSD,” he said.
In addition, although DSD affects sexual development, it is not a direct cause of differences in athletic performance, he said.
Other factors include nutrition, training, genetics, psychology and disease, with their influence on performance varying from person to person, he said.
The IBA said that neither Lin nor Khelif should have been allowed to compete in Paris, while the International Olympic Committee stood by its decision to allow them to compete. Both boxers won gold medals in their respective weight classes.
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