Spoilsports: How do gender and sexuality non-conforming athletes participate in the resistant heteronormative sporting climate?

Abstract

The heteronormative sporting environment underpins the sex/gender and heterosexual/homosexual binaries that are deeply entrenched in sport (Maurer-Starks et al., 2008). These function to preserve the biological differences between cisgender men and women, and remain institutionally resistant to individuals who transgress the boundaries of hegemonic masculinity and femininity (Davison & Frank, 2006). This study explores the idiosyncratic sporting experiences of lesbian and trans male athletes navigating the resistant climate. Four in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with two self-identified lesbian athletes and two self-identified trans male athletes. Results indicate that paths to empowerment for lesbian athletes centred on accentuating the masculine gender performances as atypical to hegemonic femininity. For trans male athletes, the medical transition was at the foci of narratives and masculine gender performances led to successful reinscriptions of the body through sport. Despite the oppressive conditions, the lesbian and trans male athletes found safe spaces to participate in sports.