Weightlifter Laurel Hubbard, the first openly transgender athlete at the Olympics, is now OUT of the competition.
JUST IN – Weightlifter Laurel Hubbard, the first openly transgender athlete to compete at the Olympics, is out of the women's competition early after failing on three lifts. pic.twitter.com/sNEszFObif
— Disclose.tv 🚨 (@disclosetv) August 2, 2021
Laurel Hubbard, a transgender athlete from New Zealand, made history by competing in the women’s +87kg division at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Despite a petition against the weightlifter’s participation in the Games, signed by 30,000 people, Hubbard was still allowed to compete against the female athletes, as Daily Mail reports.
However, Hubbard’s Olympic debut was marked with a defeat after the weightlifter failed to successfully lift the bar. Laurel was eliminated from the competition after failing to perform all three of the attempts she had, as per Herald Sun.
The transgender weightlifter’s participation at the Olympics sparked a wave of unrest all over the world.
Laurel Hubbard, the first openly transgender athlete to compete at an Olympic Games, has failed to register a lift in the final of the women's super-heavyweight weightlifting in Tokyo.
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) August 2, 2021
According to LAD Bible, Hubbard’s inclusion was possible due to amendments to the International Olympic Committee’s qualifying guidelines made in 2015, allowing trans athletes to compete in women’s events depending on their testosterone levels.
Many argued that, by allowing the 43-year-old to compete, the IOC put her female opponents at a significant disadvantage. The petition signed by thousands of people said:
“This completely ignores the physical advantages in speed, height, stamina and strength that a male-born athlete will have. Women were not consulted and did not consent to this policy which will make a complete mockery of their sport.”
Moments before Hubbard’s Olympic debut, she thanked the committee for allowing her to make history.
#UPDATE Laurel Hubbard maintained a low profile before the +87kg weightlifting category, aside from releasing a brief statement#Tokyo2020 #Olympics pic.twitter.com/z2oWdQ9laC
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) August 2, 2021
The male-born athlete said:
“The Olympic Games are a global celebration of our hopes, our ideals and our values. I commend the IOC for its commitment to making sport inclusive and accessible.”
Hubbard is now ranked 15th in the world and has also become the third oldest lifter in Olympic history. She transitioned from male to female in 2012, at the age of 35, after decades of competing in men’s weightlifting competitions.
Do you think the IOC was right to allow Laurel Hubbard to compete in the women’s division? Leave a comment to let us know!
