Female strength athletes welcome Alberta’s changes to women’s sports

'One side dings us for being trans exclusionary and the other side dings us for not being trans exclusionary enough'

Published Aug 27, 2024  •  Last updated 7 minutes ago  •  4 minute read

Maria Barwig at the 2021 Cariboo's Strongest truck pull event in Williams Lake, B.C. Photo by Courtesy Maria Barwig.

OTTAWA — A group of female strength athletes is speaking out in favour of the Alberta government’s new rules relating to women’s sports and arguing that further government action is needed to reverse a toxic climate surrounding the participation of trans lifters in women’s divisions.

“It’s not our intention to exclude anyone from competing, but the status quo (of mixed competition) is unsustainable,” said Julianne Cragg, an elite powerlifter based in Edmonton.

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Cragg, who has lifted competitively since 2019, says the erstwhile policy of allowing trans athletes to lift in women’s categories with no vetting done beforehand exposed her and other female lifters to a climate of harassment and intimidation, driving several to consider leaving the sport altogether.

“An I.D. that says ‘female’ was basically all you needed to enter a woman’s event,” Cragg told the National Post in an interview.

The Canadian Powerlifting Union (CPU) terminated its gender self-identification policy last fall, under pressure from its parent International Powerlifting Federation.

As it stands, competitive male-to-female lifters must show a valid passport bearing a female gender, a declaration that cannot be changed for at least four years. They must also register a testosterone level equal to or below an accepted threshold for a year or more prior to competition.

By contrast, its sister organization USA Powerlifting expressly prohibits male-to-female lifters from competing in women’s divisions, a policy that was upheld in court earlier this year.

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Cragg says that concerns she raised about competing against biologically stronger male-born lifters were ignored for years. In one instance, she claims, a coach suggested she “lose a few pounds” to dodge a transgender competitor in her weight class.

She also noted that the CPU’s trans inclusion policy creates an unfair dilemma for competitors who are bound by religious and cultural codes not to mingle with non-relative members of the opposite sex, such as Muslim and Hutterite women.

“The status quo is unsustainable,” says powerlifter Julianne Cragg. Photo by Courtesy Julianne Cragg

Things came to a head for Cragg in 2021 when she was confronted by a male-born competitor following an event.

“That athlete came up to me (after) they’d won and said to me… just so you know, I’m biological male and the rules allow it, so there’s nothing you can do,” Cragg said in an interview earlier this year, adding that the athlete dared her to lodge an official complaint.

Cragg was so shaken by the incident, and her subsequent lack of recourse, that she took a lengthy hiatus from lifting.

“I’d touch the bar and I’d just cry,” recalled Cragg.

The CPU finally took action against the athlete last month, issuing a six-month ban after an independent arbitrator uncovered a years-long pattern of targeted harassment toward fellow competitors, extending to online bullying.

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While Cragg appreciates the belated disciplinary action, she questions why the serious complaints of threatening conduct were left unaddressed for so long.

Maria Barwig, a Strongman competitor based in Langley, B.C., says that her own experience with harassment in her sport shows why individual sporting federations can’t be left alone to self-police matters relating to gender identity.

“There has to be a blanket government policy as it relates to women’s divisions,” Barwig told the National Post.

Barwig was one of several athletes who complained about the social media posts of a male-to-female trans Strongman competitor, leading to that individual receiving a six-month suspension last October from competing in Strongman Corp-sponsored events.

The private corporation’s ruling didn’t prevent the individual in question from competing in competitive powerlifting events. In fact, the athlete won first prize in a CPU-sanctioned meet while still under suspension by the Strongman Corp.

Women’s powerlifting has recently been at the heart of the debate surrounding the place of transgender athletes in women’s sport. London, Ont.-based lifter April Hutchinson became the face of the controversy last year when she was slapped with a two-year ban by the CPU for criticizing its gender-inclusion policy. (The suspension was later reduced to one year). Hutchinson has since become a mainstay on the international media circuit, recently sitting for interviews with Piers Morgan and Megyn Kelly.

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Cragg and Barwig are both ambivalent about the attention influencers like Hutchinson have brought to the issue, saying the polarized climate has put them in a no-win situation.

“One side dings us for being trans exclusionary and the other side dings us for not being trans exclusionary enough,” lamented Barwig.

Barwig said that she believes strongly that trans athletes should be treated with respect, such as by having their fellow competitors address them using their preferred pronouns.

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Both women applaud Alberta Premier Danielle Smith for taking a stand on the issue that seeks to reconcile biological realities with the dignity of trans athletes.

Smith announced in January that an overhaul of sporting gender divisions would soon be coming to Alberta, saying that the status quo, which lacks an across-the-board policy, was not beneficial for women, “including those who are transgender.” Legislation enshrining the new divisions is expected for the fall.

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Canada’s Minister of Sport Carla Qualtrough said not to expect the federal government to follow Alberta’s lead anytime soon.

“Sport eligibility criteria should be sport-specific, evidence-based and rights-respecting,” Qualtrough told the National Post in an email. “In Canada, National Sport Organizations (NSOs) are responsible for eligibility criteria and team selection for their sport.”

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