Alice Soper: Sports that are safe for transgender athletes are safe for everyone

Change is a constant part of sport - so open up and play on, writes Alice Soper. Photo / Getty

OPINION:

This week, Sport New Zealand released its guiding principles on the inclusion of transgender people in community sport. This 25-page document laid out the considerations and steps sporting organisations could take to make their codes fit for purpose. There is much in this document and in this wider conversation that once again challenges us to rethink the way things currently are in the grassroots game.

I’ve said it before, sports that are safe for trans athletes are safe for everyone. Much of what is laid out in this document is not just applicable to our transgender teammates. It is a framework that could be applied to support the participation of many for whom our sports were not originally designed to include. This ongoing discussion seems to me to be missing this key point, that sport needs to take this opportunity to rethink their traditions which are narrowing themselves to the point of obsolescence.

I can’t tell you what it would mean to me to see my sport release a document that stated that the starting point for women in the game was inclusion in all areas. What I’m sure it would mean to my teammates with different cultural backgrounds to see education be a foundational tenant. How much it would mean to all of us to have listening and responding being something our governing bodies regularly did. I am reminded again of how the Black Ferns review revealed that management did not feel they were equipped to confidently support LGBTQIA+ athletes. This from the part of the sport where out players are a part of the fabric, raises questions over the need to upskill the code’s competency across the board.

Black Ferns celebrate with the trophy after winning the Rugby World Cup final. Photo / Photosport

There will be those who will decry this document as virtue signalling. These are likely the same folks who point to the values painted on the clubroom wall. What is wrong with knowing what type of group you are signing up to join? It would have saved me a lot of heartache over the years to understand the rooms I was walking into and the limits they were placing on my participation.

There will be those who will dismiss this opportunity for progress, claiming that they speak for women. Women are not a homogenous group, we contain multitudes coming from all walks for life. All I can do is speak to my own experience, having played alongside transgender athletes. What I can tell you is that their gender was the least remarkable thing about them. What puberty they had gone through didn’t make a difference to their ability to catch a pass or clear a ruck. They came, they played and they hung out with us after. Simply put, they were just another teammate.

For those of us that have played sports and then retire, that feeling of belonging that comes with it is the part we miss the most. A ready-made group of friends, a hodgepodge of personalities and backgrounds. We grow in these connections, being exposed to others who may be different from ourselves but are alike in their pursuit of their passion. Sport New Zealand has held this at the centre of their recommendations with the wish to ensure that people are welcome, accepted and comfortable to enjoy community sport.

Change is a constant part of sport. We reward innovation, adaptation and courage on the pitch but are seemingly terrified to apply this same daring to our institutions. We haven’t run pistons on the rugby field for years but the blokes that did fill the majority of the seats in our boardrooms. There are new ways to get across the advantage line which means getting the most out of our diverse communities. So open up and play on.