Celebrity fitness trainer Jillian Michaels, best known for her time as a trainer on The Biggest Loser, made it clear where she stands when it comes to transgender athlete inclusion when competing against athletes of their chosen sex.
“You’ve got two competing goals in sports. … One is inclusion, which everybody can understand and get on board with. However, the second goal that’s in direct opposition with inclusion in this instance is going to be a fair competition,” Michaels said on Fox News’ Fox & Friends. “And if that’s your priority, if your overriding priority is going to be fairness over inclusion, you’ve got to turn to the data, and the data irrefutably shows that biological males are 10 to 30% stronger, faster, have better endurance, better aerobic capacity across the board.”
Michaels’ comments come a day after a study financed by the International Olympic Committee found that transgender female athletes did not have the overall advantage that opponents have presumed they might. The study found that while transgender women had greater handgrip strength, they had lower jumping ability, lung function, and relative cardiovascular fitness compared with those who were born female.
It’s unclear which data Michaels is referencing in her comments.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.