Boxer withdraws from Canadian tournament after learning her opponent is transgender with HOURS’ notice, leaving her fearing for her safety
- Dr. Katia Bissonnette has withdrawn from the 2023 Provincial Golden Gloves Championships in Victoriaville, Quebec after learning she was scheduled to compete against Mya Walmsley
- Walmsley was declared the winner by default after organizers were unable to find a replacement for her to fight
- Bissonnette mentioned “physical and mental risks” as the reason for her withdrawal
A boxer withdrew from a Canadian tournament after being told her opponent was transgender, citing safety concerns.
Dr. Katia Bissonnette of Saguenay says she was given just an hour’s notice last month that she was to be matched with transgender fighter Mya Walmsley.
The two were scheduled to face off in the 2023 Provincial Golden Glove Championship in Victoriaville, Quebec.
However, Bissonnette withdrew at the last second when she found out who her opponent was, and as a result, Walmsley was declared the winner by default because she could not find anyone else to take her place in the same weight class.
“Women should not bear the physical and psychological risks of a man’s decisions regarding his personal life and identity,” Bissonnette said. Reduxx. “There should be two categories: biological male and female.”
Boxer Katia Bissonnette withdrew from a Canadian tournament after learning her opponent was transgender
Bissonnette did not want to fight Mya Walmsley for safety reasons. Walmsley was declared the winner by default after organizers failed to find a replacement for Bissonnette in the fight
She also cited a University of Utah study that found men can punch 163% harder than women.
Research on transgender women’s strength suggests that hormone blockers may slightly reduce this biological advantage.
According to Boxing Canada, a transgender fighter’s identity should not be disclosed if the transition occurred before puberty to prevent discrimination.
Walmsley is from Australia, her history is unknown, Bissonnette said.
She claims Walmsley’s records in Canada show “zero fights as a woman.”
For her part, Walmsley criticized Bissonnette for publicly exposing her rather than approaching her directly for a solution.
“This type of behavior puts athletes at risk of exclusion or personal attacks based on hearsay,” Walmsley said in a statement.
“I fear that these types of accusations could ultimately be used to delegitimize athletes in the women’s category and justify arbitrary and invasive regulations.”
The Canadian player cited a study showing that men can hit 163% harder than women as one of her reasons for withdrawing.
The fight was scheduled to take place last month in Victoriaville, Quebec, and has reignited the debate over how to ensure transgender athletes can participate in sports
Spoken by a graduate student in philosophy Press that she did not become a boxer and that after the whole ordeal she felt like a “political object”.
She recommended that those who trust coaches and athletes should choose appropriate gender categories for themselves.
The International Olympic Committee previously ruled that transwomen could compete in women’s categories if they lowered their testosterone levels to a certain level.
However, Walmsley confirmed she did not need to check her levels before signing up for the championship.
She argued that “‘arbitrary and invasive’ testing would lead to a dead end in requiring this type of testing.”
The controversy has reignited the debate over how best to accommodate transgender sports competitions.
The ruling came after Fallon Fox, the first openly transgender MMA fighter, revealed that she broke a fighter’s bone during a fight before retiring from the sport.
Tamika Brents suffered a fractured orbital bone, which Fox noted is a common injury in sports regardless of gender.
