When the 2016 edition of ESPN’s Body Issue hits stands July 6 it will, for the first time, feature a transgender athlete. Triathlete and transgender man Chris Mosier is among the 19 athletes who bare it all in the annual issue highlighting the diversity of body types in the sports world.
Also included in the 2016 roster are retired diver Greg Louganis, Miami Heat star Dwayne Wade, Chicago Cub pitcher Jake Arrieta, and Denver Broncos linebacker and Super Bowl MVP Von Miller. Louganis, who is gay and HIV-positive, is also the oldest athlete to be featured in the issue, at 56.
The athletes talk about their body insecurities—yes, jocks have those too—in the issue, and how they came to appreciate their bodies and the remarkable things they can do.
“As a trans person, I was in a body that didn’t really fit me for 29 years—now I feel comfortable in my own skin,” Mosier said. “That’s something that I’m proud of and wanted to share with other people.”
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The three time Iron Man finisher became the first known transgender man to make a Men’s U.S. National Team last year, qualifying in the sprint duathlon. After qualifying for the World Championship in Spain earlier this month, Mosier successfully challenged policies requiring trans athletes to have completed gender reassignment surgery before competing.
“I (successfully!) challenged Olympic policy and became the first trans man to compete in a World Championship race under the new policy, and the first trans man to compete with men,” Mosier posted on a GoFundMe.com page dedicated to raising funds for the legal challenge. “The experience of simply pulling on the uniform and lining up next to my teammates was amazing; words can’t do it justice.”
Mosier will show his stuff in the international arena again next year. In May, he qualified for the U.S. National Team in Long Course Duathlon and will compete in Switzerland in September 2017. He is also the co-creator of an online resource for transgender athletes.
