Another women’s swimming competition, another biological male standing atop the podium. Ana Caldas, formerly known as Hugo Caldas, made waves at the U.S. Masters Swimming Spring National Championships in San Antonio – by dominating the women’s 45-49 age group.
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Competing against women, Caldas walked away with gold in five individual events, including the 50-yard freestyle, 100-yard freestyle, 50-yard breaststroke, and 100-yard breaststroke. Reports indicate Caldas finished several seconds ahead of the actual female swimmers in each race, highlighting the undeniable physical advantages at play.
The results sparked immediate outrage, with groups like the Independent Council on Women’s Sports (ICONS) blasting U.S. Masters Swimming (USMS) for allowing this farcical competition. USMS currently permits male athletes who identify as women to compete against females, provided they undergo a year of hormone therapy and keep testosterone below a certain level.
But as ICONS and others point out, simply suppressing testosterone doesn’t erase the inherent advantages gained from male puberty, like greater bone density, muscle mass, and lung capacity. It’s a policy that prioritizes feelings over fairness, leaving female athletes effectively sidelined in their own sports.
This latest incident throws gasoline on the already raging fire over the integrity of women’s sports. Common sense dictates that men and women are biologically different, and those differences matter immensely in athletics. Allowing males to compete in women’s divisions makes a mockery of fair play and diminishes the achievements of female athletes.
USMS claims it’s “reviewing” its policies to ensure fairness and inclusivity. But for the women who trained tirelessly only to be beaten by a male competitor, and for fans tired of seeing women’s sports undermined, that review can’t come soon enough – and it needs to restore sanity by protecting female-only competition.
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