This is the crux of the matter: There are two, seemingly, un-reconcilable positions. I was struggling to understand why the concept of an "open" category was a problem solution until I actually spent some time talking to a trans runner in my club on a long run one Sunday. She's a she. She wants to race as the gender she identifies and lives her life as. She wants to be in control of her identity, like the rest of us do! Then you have the equally valid position of an AFAB woman who has no chance of competing on an equal footing no matter how hard they train. We all accept that some people have trained longer and train harder or smarter. Natural talent play a small part of it before you get to the sharp end of things. The expectation that Parkrun can solve this issue is ridiculous. I'd have preferred them be honest about it rather than the apparent disingenuous narrative out out.

@WATCHMEWORKUK

5 ай бұрын

I had to pin this comment as it is spot on.

@JohnSecker

4 ай бұрын

Yes, I agree - parkrun have done the right thing in getting themselves out from the middle of a bitter argument which they cannot resolve. But they have not been honest about their reasons.

Well thought out and delivered. Thank you. Given, as you observe, that parkrun is such a simple, appealing and popular institution it's farcical that its future should be jeopardised by such a complicated societal development.

@WATCHMEWORKUK

5 ай бұрын

Thank you for the response. I agree with you that this is a societal discussion that Parkrun can't be expected to resolve adequately

You are absolutely right. The stated reason is nonsense - posted records don't "put people off". It's all about the transgender debate, and in particular the fact that a right-wing think tank has decided to pick on parkrun as the latest arena for the "anti-woke" battles. As you say, parkrun is entirely the wrong place to resolve the (genuine) issues about trans participation in elite sport. That needs to be handled by the people with the resources and the incentive to sort it. But doing nothing would have meant that parkrun would be subjected to repeated attacks from the likes of the Daily Mail, and trying to exclude trans runners from the female category (how?) would have whipped up equally bitter criticism from the other side. So they have stepped off the pitch and left the two opposing sides to battle it out. I think they have done right here, though they have not been honest about their reasons.

@WATCHMEWORKUK

4 ай бұрын

This is very true. You make some great points. I am being a bit unfair with Parkrun. As you pointed out, the actions they took was their only option, the only misstep was the reasoning given.

Parkrun is not best placed to solve the gender debate and shouldn't be expected to do so in isolation, however attempting to sidestep the issue by creating an alternate narrative for the removal of the stats was clumsy at best. The brand has suffered reputational damage in the form of negative media coverage, petitions and stakeholder infighting, whilst failing to silence their critics. Where they are now is little more than a halfway house: the historic records may have gone, but the weekly results still use the categories which caused the controversy in the first place. I get the feeling there is more to come on this and sincerely hope parkrun handle it much better than recently.

@WATCHMEWORKUK

5 ай бұрын

I agree that this will rumble for a while. I do hope that top level sport agrees on the way forward and then the likes of Parkrun can just emulate their rules.

Amen!

Great analysis. I think you've hit the nail on the head. The reason parkrun gave was bogus, BUT they didn't really have any choice given the situation.

@WATCHMEWORKUK

5 ай бұрын

Exactly. I assume they would have approached some crisis management experts, and the actions they took would have been the top recommendation.

Why is "ask trans identifying parkrunners to select their sex at birth and trust that they have integrity and will do so" never discussed as a viable option?

@WATCHMEWORKUK

5 ай бұрын

The concern with that is not the integrity of whether the runners will do so. The concern is whether it is right for a trans runner to be told to select their sex, rather than their gender. This goes back to societal debates that Parkrun does not know how to handle. Also all it takes is for one mistaken or deliberate breaking of the policy and this will kick off again.

@IainThacker

5 ай бұрын

@@WATCHMEWORKUK this is the crux of the matter. There are two, seemingly, un-reconcilable positions. I was struggling to understand why the concept of an "open" category was a problem solution until I actually spent some time talking to a trans runner in my club on a long run one Sunday. She's a she. She wants to race as the gender she identifies and lives her life as. She wants to be in control of her identity, like the rest of us do! Then you have the equally valid position of an AFAB woman who has no chance of competing on an equal footing no matter how hard they train. We all accept that some people have trained longer and train harder or smarter. Natural talent play a small part of it before you get to the sharp end of things. The expectation that Parkrun can solve this issue is ridiculous. I'd have preferred them be honest about it rather than the apparent disingenuous narrative out out.

@WATCHMEWORKUK

5 ай бұрын

@@IainThacker This is a well written and very spot on comment. I wish this was a standalone comment as I would pin it.

@IainThacker

5 ай бұрын

@@WATCHMEWORKUK I'll add it stand alone as well if that helps!

@WATCHMEWORKUK

5 ай бұрын

@@IainThacker Please do! Thanks

Never looked at the homepage, storm in a teacup

@WATCHMEWORKUK

5 ай бұрын

Exactly. I think, many share the same view as you. This is why removing the records was the option chosen. The majority would not even notice or care.

Professional sporting bodies haven't bowed down because they can't afford to, the overwhelming majority of athletes would not support competing against the opposite sex, fairness or as close to fair is always of upmost paramount importance. It could be argued that does it matter for Park Run? It's not a professional sports set up, and most people take part knowing there are trained people doing it and they can't possibly compete against their times, but the participation for fun is the attraction. The issue is, it's just another example of the trans movement infiltrating and making ideological demands. Even lesbian groups have been pressured by the movement to accept biological males.

@WATCHMEWORKUK

5 ай бұрын

This debate brings us to where we are. Parkrun is best served staying away from picking a side and simply making this a "Turn up, run and go home event" which I feel they will achieve with the removal of records.