The issue of transwomen in sports continues to be debated. There seems to be a divide in the trans rights movement. Some transwomen actually feel that they should compete with cisgender men. Sports science is still exploring the subject, but that has not stopped trans bans from sports organizations. Most sports organizations are moving to stop transwomen competing in any event. What discredits the transwomen’s efforts is when they disparage cisgender women. Anne Veriato in 2018 said she was “too good” to fight cisgender female MMA fighters. Speaking to The Sun Anne expressed ” it never crossed my mind to fight a woman because I think I’m too good.” The insult of cisgender women is not going to help transwomen in sports. That type of arrogance harms transwomen seeking to compete in women’s divisions. Then, Anne Veriato underestimates the effects of hormone replacement therapy. Sexual reassignment surgery will decrease athletic performance. Anne Veriato assumes she will be able to be a match for many men under those conditions. If she were to compete in a male division, it would be a short athletic career.
Anne Veriato began competing in MMA at 21 years old. She was the first transwoman to compete in Brazilian MMA. Anne has only competed in two matches taking place in 2018. Winning just two matches against men is not evidence that she would be too much for cisgender women. When Anne Veriato was speaking to the press she was still doing more hormone replacement therapy. The longer that is done, her strength and speed will be reduced. She competed as a flyweight ( 125 lbs ) . Her opponent Railson Paixao was a strawweight (115 lbs). Anne was not even fighting a man in her own weight class. This explains the match outcome. Alcivan Perreira Dos Santos was a lightweight ( 155 lbs). The 2018 match was his first one.
Anne got a false sense of her physical capability. The first match was against a cisgender man ten pounds less than her. The other was against an athlete in his first professional match. Anne Viriato’s body is in the process of producing more estrogen. As testosterone is reduced in her body, muscle mass will decrease. Punching power and upper body strength are going to be effected. That means Anne would not have the ability to beat men prior to sexual reassignment surgery. Depending on the number of years of HRT, muscle mass can be reduced. According to The Sun , Anne began the process a few years ago. Three years of HRT can alter musculoskeletal mass. Anne has only fought in two matches. Anne has not had another match since. The reason is in the span of 6 years of HRT means physical fitness capacity would have lowered. Anne acknowledged she did not have the same amount of strength and had to train harder. That diligent training was only enough to beat a man below her weight class and an athlete in their first professional match.
Anne Viriato would not be able to last in a male division. Her reasoning behind this choice was that it would be unfair for her to compete with cisgender women. The longer she is on HRT it might change her mind. She acknowledged that her strength and speed decreased. Anne says she needed to train harder. Fighting a cisgender man would place Anne at a disadvantage. One in her weight class or higher would win. An experienced cisgender man fighter would not be an equivalent match.
Two matches do not prove Anne could keep up with men. She would have to fight more men to make the case that transwomen fighting cisgender women is unfair. If she had more victories against a large sample size of men, then an argument could be made for unfairness. To further illustrate a difference an experiment should be done with transmen. Transmen and transwomen based on the unfairness argument should be able to compete with one another. The transman would most likely have an edge due to an increase in androgens. The transwoman loses physical advantage with SRS. All are not completely eliminated. Heart and lung size are not altered after surgery. It would be unfair to have transwomen compete with cisgender men. Transwomen could possibly get hurt competing with men. Meaning it is less likely a cisgender woman would be at a disadvantage or harmed from a transwoman.
Saying she was ‘too good to fight women” under mines efforts of trans athletes. Many still want transwomen out of sports. Arguments range from they are not real women or are men pretending to do so. One false assumption is that they transition, because they were mediocre male athletes and they could find success being a woman. Cisgender women might be suspicious of transwomen. This could be out of prejudice or irrational fears. The sentiment of Anne reinforces myths and anti-trans hate. Then it opens a conundrum about the trans movement. If we are to accept that Anne Variato is a woman, why would she not integrate with cisgender women ? Then it also comes to pronoun usage. Substituting they and them for she or he becomes almost frivolous. This harms the trans movement and further alienates them from the mainstream. A faction of radical feminists and anti-trans women dislike them because they accuse them of pretending to women.
Transwomen are not trying to pretend to be women. Going through sexual reassignment surgery changes a person’s body. It is more than just a person wearing clothes of the opposite sex or adopting certain behaviors. Trans people are divided about the debate regrading sports competition. Transwomen experience more hatred when competing compared to transmen. A transwoman athlete saying they are better than cisgender women does not help the cause.
There are many women that could beat Anne Veriato. Rhonda Rosey when she competed would have a victory. Rhonda is 135 lbs, which she has a 10 lbs advantage. Considering her experience Anne Veriato would lose. A match would be a bantamweight versus a flyweight. Holly Holm beat Rhonda so bad, some speculate that is why she retired from MMA. Holly Holm won 15 MMA matches. Rhonda had just 14 MMA wins. Anne Veriato only had two matches in 2018. Holly Holm is the same weight as Rhonda Rousey. This is not much of a comparison when examining match wins. Anne’s chances of being better are lowered when matching with other fighters. Cris Cyborg outweighs Rhonda and Holly at 155 lbs. Her record is 27 wins. Zhang Weili is the smallest at 115 lbs. Zhang’s wins are 25 total. Anne would not be better than these athletes. The only one she might win against is Zhang. This would be related to weight difference , rather than skill.
The choice of competing is up to an athlete. If Anne Veriato wants to have matches with men. She should be allowed to do so. The problem is her reasons for doing so. It was implied that Anne Veriato would be superior to cisgender female athletes. This brings into question the concept of saying transwomen are real women. What she did not realize is that hormone replacement therapy will change fitness. Anne Veriato according to some media sources got her sexual reassignment surgery at 18. Unconfirmed reports were that she went on HRT at 14. When she began doing MMA in 2018, the changes occurred. More physical effort was required for athletic training. A few more years she will not be able to keep up with men. Anne Veriato only competed two times. Another concern is also noted. Anne Veriato testified before the Sports Committee in the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies. The hearing took place in 2019 and was debating on whether transwomen should be compete in sports. Anne Veriato most likely would support the idea of transwomen being on men’s teams. The intention of the hearing was evident. It was designed to stop transwomen from competing in sports. Anne Veriato probably did not realize the tactic. Getting a transwoman to testify hide the discriminatory laws and rules to be imposed. When new rules are enacted transwomen will not even be allowed to compete with males. It is to get them out of sports entirely. Anne Veriato might find herself not being able to compete due to discriminatory laws or rules of a sports organization. Insulting cisgender women athletes does not help the trans movement either.