What can we learn from boxing in the Olympics?

Algerian, Imane Khelif won a boxing match against Italian, Angela Carini, with just a few punches thrown. A controversy has arisen over whether Khelif is a male competing against a female.

According to what I’ve been able to see, it appears that Khelif’s sex at birth was determined to be female. Due to her physiology, she has a very muscular and male-like build. Some are claiming that she is a male competing against a female. They are claiming that she has XY (male) chromosomes, and we should be looking at chromosomes and testosterone levels rather than sex at birth.

There are about eleven states that have passed laws regarding use of restrooms based on sex identity at birth. The issue came up during the Obama administration when schools were given notification about the rights of transgendered students.

The boxing incidence points out the difficulties in using simple, visual criteria for determining sex at birth. It may also be pointing out that there are some stereotypical differences between males and females. Is it becoming more difficult to protect women’s sports? Should we just give up the sexual boundaries and have everyone compete based on other criteria?

I’d like to think that we all want each individual to compete not only in sports, but also in life, to the best of their capabilities. Minorities have been discriminated against. We must recognize that fact. In some cases, minorities have been protected (eg. women’s sports). We must also recognize that fact. We want to give people discriminated against the right to compete, while still protecting the minority when necessary.

For example, Women want to play in the NFL. The Boy Scouts now accept girls and have broadened the curriculum. The Girl Scouts do not allow boys.

We must grapple with the question of how to maintain fairness and eliminate bias? How do we allow everyone to compete while preserving equality of competitors? The question might have easier answers in sports than it does in business.

Knee-jerk reactions are not helpful. We need careful considerations.