World Boxing Council knocks some sense into trans debate
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Welcome to another year of sports quirkiness. I’d like to start it with a sports decision that’s far too enlightened for these crazy times.
Men won’t be allowed to hit women.
That’s the old-fashioned and impolitic way of saying people “assigned male at birth” will not be allowed to fight against people “assigned female at birth.” The news comes from, of all places, the World Boxing Council.
When it comes to ethics, boxing organizations traditionally rank between the 1919 White Sox and the Medellin Cartel. But the WBC announced last week that it’s starting a transgender division.
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Transgender sports participation is one of our hottest hot-button issues, as last year’s Lia Thomas controversy showed. It’s one thing to let transgender women compete in swimming or weightlifting or track and field.
The worst thing that happens is they win by a mile and their competitors feel cheated. In combat and collision sports, competitors might leave with broken bones and fractured skulls.
That’s why World Rugby banned transgender women in 2020. Boxing New Zealand created an Open category for transgender boxers last year.
It was predictably accused of being homophobic, transphobic and probably aurophobic by those who insist transgender women have no physical advantages. Or even if they do, they should be allowed to compete in the name of inclusion.
Inclusion has its place in this debate, but so does fairness. And so does common sense.
I don’t care if George Foreman took testosterone suppressants and changed his name. I still wouldn’t want to have been punched in the ribs by Georgette Foreman.
Call the WBC transphobic, but it knows most boxers “assigned female at birth” feel the same way ...
How about those Horned Frogs?
Stud of the Week: TCU, for showing that “being assigned TCU at birth” could not stop it from beating Michigan and making the CFP championship game.
Stud II: Luka Doncic, for becoming the first NBA player to rack up 250 points, 50 rebounds and 50 assists in a five-game span. That’s roughly what the entire Lakers team managed last week.
Dud of the Week: Southwest Airlines. If you’re still waiting on your Christmas Eve connecting flight, you know why.
Dud II: The New York Knicks, for blowing a nine-point lead against Doncic’s Mavericks in the final 35 seconds. According to ESPN, teams leading by that much were 13,884-0 in the past 20 years.
Dud II: Kentucky, for being the only team shut out in a bowl game this postseason in its 21-0 Music City Bowl loss to Iowa. The Wildcats offense reportedly tried to fly Southwest to Nashville …
In case you’re wondering, aurophobia is the fear of gold and golden objects, like national championship trophies. Georgia had a case of it for 41 years …
Terminology Update: Police in Scotland were blasted for using the term “minor-attracted people” instead of “pedophiles” in a year-end report. In related news, the NFL now refers to Deshaun Watson as a “massage therapist-attracted person.”...
The Masters sent an official invitation to Scott Stallings last week, only it was the wrong Scott Stallings. Instead of going to the 54th-ranked golfer, the package went to another guy named Scott Stallings who lives in Georgia and is married to a person assigned female at birth named Jennifer.
Stallings II notified Stallings I via social media and said he’d forward the invitation. The Masters hasn’t commented on the foul-up, but I’d like to notify the Augusta National Mailroom that I am changing my name to Hideki Matsuyama ...
Southern Cal boosters seeking players for defense
NIL Update: USC boosters are offering $50,000 to any player capable of making a tackle. …
George Foreman didn’t name any of his daughters Georgette, but he did name all five of his sons George. Things could get very confusing if one of them ever qualifies for the Masters. ...
Other phobias: Arithmophobia – fear of numbers. Erotophobia – fear of sex. Zuigerphobia – fear of vacuum cleaners. Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia – fear of long words. Zythophobia – fear of beer. Phophobia – fear of phobias. …
Prediction: Deshaun Watson will never make a disabled list due to erotophobia. ...
LSU booster/personal injury attorney Gordon McKernan said he’s spent almost $1 million on NIL deals for 15 football players. My guess is players get paid to autograph the neck braces McKernan’s clients wear to court. ...
Quote of the Week: After scoring 61 points against New York, Doncic noted, “I’m tired as hell. I need a recovery beer.”
He scored 86 points in his next two games. The guy definitely does not suffer from zythophobia. …
This Just In: Gene Stallings has been invited to play in this year’s Masters. …
That’s about all the space we have for this week’s Whitley’s Believe It or Not. If it failed to connect, I blame Southwest Airlines.
David Whitley is The Gainesville Sun's sports columnist. Contact him at dwhitley@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @DavidEWhitley
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Trans debate: WBC says people born men should not fight people born women
