International chess organization bans trans women from competing as women

Republicans have long argued that trans women should be banned from women’s sports due to an alleged physical advantage over cisgender women. But no amount of testosterone could presumably affect the outcomes of the latest sport to have banned trans women from competing: chess.

The International Chess Federation (FIDE) has released a new policy on trans players, which declares that trans women have “no right to participate in official FIDE events for women until further FIDE’s decision is made.” The organization has given itself up to two years for “further analysis” on the matter. Until then trans women will be relegated to play in an open category.

Related:

Texas governor hosts a signing ceremony for an anti-trans sports bill he signed in June

It seems Greg Abbott just wanted to keep celebrating the elimination of trans rights.

The policy makes clear it is specifically trans women who cannot compete as women, but it does not say the same for trans men competing in men’s categories. It does, however, say it will strip trans men of any titles they earned in the women’s category before their transition.

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Completely misunderstanding trans identities, it then explains that the titles “can be renewed if the person changes the gender back to a woman.” In fact, the language in the policy continuously shows a lack of knowledge about trans identities, describing trans people, for example, as changing their gender “from a man into a woman.”

And yet, trans women are able to maintain their previous titles. All of this seems to suggest that FIDE is operating under a belief that trans women have an intellectual advantage over cis women.

“I for one don’t think I am smarter than most cis women,” wrote trans journalist Ana Valens in an op-ed for The Mary Sue, “nor do I think my pre-transition years gave me some sort of innate advantage at chess, so this shouldn’t be the case. Yet FIDE is treating trans women as some sort of threat to the integrity of cisgender women playing chess.”

The new policy also makes it harder for trans people to update their gender in the FIDE system, demanding that they provide “sufficient proof of a gender change that complies with their national laws and regulations.” Proof includes documents like updated passports, birth certificates, or court decisions. This rule will no doubt eliminate the possibility of an official gender change in FIDE’s records for the many folks who do not live in places with trans-friendly laws. The organization will reject a requested gender change if there is not “sufficient evidence of such change.”

Valens emphasized that FIDE is setting a “dangerous precedent.”

“All that anxiety over trans women in physical sports? It’s spreading to other competitive fields too. It won’t be long until esports—a field I actually participate in and have ambitions for competing in—is in the crosshairs.”