New Zealand could scrap funding for sports that allow trans athletes to compete against women

Roger Maynard
Fri, 22 December 2023 

Champion mountain biker Kate Weatherly, a transgender athlete, said she feared athletes could be forced into men's competitions - TVNS Youtube

New Zealand’s government is threatening to withhold millions of dollars in taxpayer funding from sporting bodies if they do not comply with a drive to separate transgender athletes from grassroots-level competitions.

In a move that has angered transgender sports figures, the country’s new conservative coalition has demanded that “publicly funded sporting bodies support fair competition that is not compromised by rules relating to gender”.

The policy, which is being led by the minority New Zealand First Party, a populist political movement which shares power with the conservative National and ACT parties, is being promoted as a fairer and more equal approach to female sporting opportunities.

‘Fairness and safety in sports for women’


Andy Foster, the New Zealand First Party’s sport and recreation spokesman, said it was about “fairness and safety in sport for women”.

The policy will only apply to sport at an amateur level and not international sports such as cricket, rugby league and swimming.

But while it will only impact community competitions, critics fear it has the potential to deter transgender athletes from participating in sports at a grassroots level.

Champion mountain biker Kate Weatherly, herself a transgender athlete, told the New Zealand Herald that she feared athletes would be forced into men’s competitions or sidelined completely.
‘As good as exclusion’

“People must choose between participating in a sport they love and invalidating their identity or leaving the community or sport to continue being who they are,” she said. “That is as good as exclusion. It misses the point of community sport. Everybody should have access to social environments sports can bring.”

The two-time national mountain bike champion said there were far more pressing concerns involving women’s sports.

“If we want to discuss the impact trans women have on women’s willingness to participate in sport, that’s fine, but let’s do that after we’ve addressed every other barrier to women’s participation,” she added.

Chris Bishop, the sport and recreation minister, backed the New Zealand First party in its attempts to create a more inclusive environment and ensure that rules relating to gender did not interfere with that.
‘Strong views on both sides’

But in an interview which local media described as “uncomfortable,” he admitted it was a “tricky one – a thorny issue”.

“There’s strong views on both sides of the debate,” he said, promising to work through the issues with the relevant sporting bodies.

“Ultimately it’s got to go over to sporting bodies to make sure we have fair competition,” he insisted.

While, at least for the moment, the transgender issue will remain at a local level, there is a lot of money at stake.

The New Zealand government will invest around $9.3 million (more than £4.5 million) into nearly 40 community sports clubs next year, funding that many amateur clubs rely on for their survival.

Mr Foster said local sports clubs should not expect to receive taxpayer support if they disagreed with the new policy.

“If a code says ‘We don’t want to do that,’ that is their choice, but they shouldn’t then expect the taxpayer to say we’re delighted to support you doing something we see as unsafe and unfair,” he said. “That’s the policy.”