Transgender women will not be able to participate in high-level women’s chess tournaments, the decision sparked questionable criticism even among cisgender women. The International Chess Federation (FIDE) has ruled that a player who transitions from male to female “does not have the right to participate in official FIDE events for women” until a new decision, which can take a maximum of two. year. The rules will go into effect on August 21, but have surprised some members of the chess community who question whether biological sex confers any advantage in the game.
The opportunity to allow trans women to participate in women’s sports competitions has long raised serious doubts as a trans woman has the muscles and strength of a biological man. But in chess, physical strength has nothing to do with it, only intelligence, and so to think that a trans person might have a biological advantage as a male is like saying that men are potentially smarter that way.
Under the new rules, trans players will be able to compete in open tournaments, but not in women-only events, the Times reported. These events were created to encourage more women to play and to celebrate their achievements in a largely male-dominated field so far, and there are no official tournaments reserved for male-only players. Currently only about 15% of chess players registered with Fide are women, but this is still a record. The popularity of the game among teenagers has increased in recent years thanks to the Netflix series “The Queen of Chess” starring Anya Taylor-Joy.
Yosha Iglesias, 35, a French transgender recognized by Fide as a woman, described the latest move as “unbearable”. “It doesn’t have a biological advantage. It’s not about biology, it’s sociology, psychology and sexism, aggression,” Fide added. They say they’re not against trans people, they’re fighting to protect women’s sport even though they don’t care at all about women’s sport,” she said.
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Source: Today IT
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
