Through the Static

By Jessa Raven
Contributing writer, Through the Static

The national debate over Transgender athletes in the United States has been framed almost entirely around one question: whether Transgender girls — athletes who were assigned male at birth — should be allowed to compete in girls’ sports. This framing has driven legislation, school policies, and media coverage across the country. Supporters of restrictions often argue that the issue is about “fairness” or “protecting girls.” But largely missing from this conversation is a basic and inconvenient reality: Transgender boys — athletes who were assigned female at birth and transition to male — also compete in boys’ sports. Some of them have done so successfully for years.

Their absence from the public debate reveals a deeper imbalance in how this issue is being discussed — and why.

Many Trans boys:

• Compete in boys’ or men’s divisions
• Undergo testosterone therapy, which increases muscle mass and strength
• Train and compete under the same rules as cisgender boys

Yet their participation is rarely mentioned in legislative hearings, media coverage, or political talking points, reinforcing a narrative that treats gender transition as controversial only when it is perceived as transitioning from male to female.

Real Athletes, Real Competition: Chris Mosier

Mosier’s career challenges the idea that sex assigned at birth alone determines athletic ability. His experience reflects what sports science has long shown: performance is shaped by training, physiology, resources, and the specific demands of each sport — not by simplistic biological categories, as documented in Chris Mosier’s work and advocacy.

One of the clearest examples of policy contradiction is Mack Beggs, a former Texas high-school wrestler. Because Texas required athletes to compete based on sex assigned at birth, Beggs was forced to wrestle in the girls’ division even while undergoing testosterone therapy as part of his transition. He went on to win multiple state championships, repeatedly stating that he wanted to compete against boys but was prohibited from doing so by law. The policy was promoted as a way to “protect girls’ sports.” In practice, it produced the very imbalance lawmakers claimed to oppose, as reported by The New York Times.

Schuyler Bailar became the first openly transgender athlete to compete on an NCAA Division I men’s team, swimming for Harvard University. Before transitioning, Bailar competed on the university’s women’s team. After transitioning and beginning testosterone therapy, he joined the men’s team, where his performance aligned with male peers. There was no controversy — just competition. Bailar has written extensively about his experience.

What these policies actually do

Most legislation targeting Trans athletes focuses on K–12 public school sports, often framed as protecting children. However, the logic behind these policies extends beyond school athletics.

If participation is determined strictly by sex assigned at birth:

• Trans boys on testosterone could be forced into girls’ sports
• Athletes with male secondary sex characteristics could be placed on girls’ teams
• Safety, privacy, and fairness concerns could increase rather than decrease

These outcomes highlight a core inconsistency: the rules are not being applied in ways that reflect real athletic conditions.

Cultural bias plays a significant role in shaping this debate. Athletes perceived as “male entering women’s spaces” are often framed as threats, and athletes perceived as “female entering men’s spaces” are frequently dismissed, ignored, or treated as non-issues.

This imbalance suggests that the controversy is less about sports integrity and more about enforcing rigid ideas of gender — particularly around femininity, masculinity, and who is allowed access to women’s spaces.

At elite levels, athletic organizations rarely rely on blanket bans. Instead, they use sport-specific eligibility criteria informed by medical research and performance data. The International Olympic Committee, for example, no longer enforces a single universal testosterone rule. Instead, it defers eligibility decisions to individual sports’ governing bodies, acknowledging that competitive advantage varies widely by sport. This approach reflects a reality often missing from U.S. political debates: there is no one-size-fits-all solution, according to the International Olympic Committee.

“Saying the quiet part out loud”

Trans boys “play sports.” They train. They compete. They win and lose like everyone else. Their near-total absence from the national debate is “not accidental.” It allows a simplified narrative to persist — one that focuses fear on a narrow group while ignoring evidence that complicates the story.

Until the conversation includes all athletes, it will remain “incomplete — and misleading.”

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