Ben Shapiro Attacks and Misgenders Transgender Olympic Athlete: ‘This is a Dude who is a Full Dude in Every Respect’
New Zealand weightlifter Laurel Hubbard is set to make history next month, as the first transgender athlete to compete in the Olympics. Hubbard qualified for the Tokyo Olympics in May and was selected for the national team Monday.
Set to compete super-heavyweight category, Hubbard’s weightlifting has fueled intense debate regarding transgender athletes participating in women’s sports. Ben Shapiro spoke out against the decision to let Hubbard — whom he misgendered — compete in the Tokyo Olympics on his daily podcast.
“Let me just put it this way to the women, that is wildly unfair,” Shapiro said. “This is a dude who is a full dude in every respect and continues to be a full dude, just with either some surgeries or some hormone therapy.”
Hubbard competed as a weightlifter against men until 2001, but stopped at age 23, more than a decade before transitioning at age 35. Now at 43-years-old, Hubbard has been competing against women as an international weightlifter since 2017.
“You had the full bone and muscle development of a man, all the way not just through puberty, but through adulthood and was competing against dudes in the same category,” Shapiro continued. “And now we’re gonna pretend that this is an even playing field, and that it makes no difference.”
Hubbard is eligible to compete in this Summer Games because of changes made to transgender guidelines by the International Olympic Committee in 2015. Athletes who transition from male to female are able to compete against women, as long as their testosterone remains below a designated level for at least 12 months. After meeting that criteria, Hubbard has been confirmed as eligible for the Tokyo Olympics.
During his show, Shapiro read a statement from New Zealand Olympics chief Karen Smith, who referred to Hubbard as creating a “historic moment in sports and for the New Zealand team, she’s our first Olympian who has transitioned from male to female.”
“Except you can’t become a female after being a male that is not physically possible,” Shapiro added.
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