Sharron Davies

Sharron Davies is an Olympic swimmer who represented Great Britain

Thursday

Sharron Davies

The Supreme Court’s trans athlete ruling matters to women everywhere

Women are losing trophies and, in some cases, suffering serious physical harm when male athletes are permitted to compete in female sports categories. What was once viewed as a fringe issue has undoubtedly grown into an internationally recognised matter of public concern. But, finally, the fightback against this infringement of women's rights might be on. This week, the United States Supreme Court heard two cases – West Virginia v. B.P.J. and Little v. Hecox – that go to the heart of this debate. Though they arise from American law, the questions they raise are global: can women’s sport continue to be organised around biological sex, or will sex-based categories be legally redefined out of existence?

Thursday

Sharron Davies

Christmas Special 2023

70 min listen

Welcome to this festive episode of the Edition podcast, where we will be taking you through the pages of The Spectator’s special Christmas triple issue.  Up first: What a year in politics it has been. 2023 has seen scandals, sackings, arrests and the return of some familiar faces. It’s easy to forget that at the start of the year Nicola Sturgeon was still leader of the SNP! To make sense of it all is editor of The Spectator, Fraser Nelson, The Spectator’s political editor Katy Balls, and Quentin Letts, sketch writer for the Daily Mail. (01:06) Next: The story that has dominated the pages of The Spectator in the latter half of this year is of course the conflict in Gaza.

Wednesday

Sharron Davies

Men don’t belong in women’s sport

Olympic leaders say there’s no such thing as male advantage in sport. Here’s a simple question for them: if that were true, why not just scrap sex-based categories of men and women altogether? We all know why. Men run faster, jump higher and are stronger than women. In my sport of swimming, men are on average 11 per cent quicker than women. In boxing, their punches are 160 per cent more powerful. Such advantages mean that, on gender transition, mediocre male athletes are rocketing up the rankings, winning prizes and taking women’s places for one simple reason: whatever their feelings and life choices, they are biologically male. So, faster, higher, stronger – but not better. Different. Human biology dictates it. In sport, sex matters.