Sex, sport and doping: conflicts for bioethical analysis.

Abstract

It seems beyond doubt that the practice of certain sports requires gender differentiation, given the sexlinked characteristics that determine different levels of performance and skills. Moreover, there is a consensus on condemning doping practices, such as attempts to artificially alter the physical performance of athletes through the use of certain substances, because they involve tampering with the physical or mental conditions of the persons involved, as well as practices that have health risks, with consequences that can become serious and irreversible. In the case of ″trans″ athletes, their genetics, physiology, and endocrine system, responsible for typically male testosterone levels, would provide an insurmountable barrier to their eligibility in female athletic competition. However, the case of athletes diagnosed with Disorders of Sex Development does not fit into any of the above scenarios. They are biologically women and competes in the female category. They have not taken any anabolic substances that may be considered doping. We propose a bioethical evaluation of these cases.