With sport representing one of the last bastions of binary thinking, trans and nonbinary athletes face formidable hurdles in their struggles for inclusion, acceptance, and freedom. Trans Athletes’ Resistance: The Struggle for Justice in Sport documents and analyses individual and collective resistance initiated by trans and nonbinary athletes and allies across a range of social-cultural and geopolitical contexts, from community sport to high-performance competition. In addition to sociological investigations of global, national, and local resistance, contributors present case studies and first-person accounts of struggles to challenge structural barriers and interpersonal hostility. Challenging policy-makers' binary definitions of males and females, the dominance of the achievement model, and toxic masculinity within sporting subcultures, the book explores how trans and nonbinary athletes not only resist transphobic policies and practices but also create new models of inclusive sport. The book has important implications for gender-inclusive policy development. Contributors present new methodologies and ways of theorizing the complex relationships among sex, gender, and sexuality in the equally complex terrain of sport and physical activity.

The last decade has seen significant changes in global attitudes, policies and practices that impact the lives of trans people, but the world of sport has been slow to follow these initiatives. Contributors to this book document the formidable social-cultural and legal challenges facing trans athletes, particularly girls and women, at the global, national, and local levels, in contexts ranging from school sport to international competition. They demonstrate how proponents of trans exclusion rely on flawed or inconclusive science, selectively employed to support their purported goal of 'protecting women's sport'. Politicians in the US, UK, and elsewhere who have shown little interest in women or in sport exploit the issue to advance broader conservative agendas, while hostile mainstream and social media coverage exacerbates the problem. Bringing insights from sociology, philosophy, science and law, contributors present cogent analyses of these developments and explore the way forward, providing thoughtful and original recommendations for changes to policies and practices that are inclusive, innovative and democratic.