Krista Li and her family face a difficult decision this school year. Li, a researcher, Girl Guides leader and mother in Calgary with two daughters, has to decide whether to continue to enroll her youngest, Iris, in school and recreational sports. Eleven-year-old Iris is a competitive fencer at the provincial level in the under-13 category and trains on an all-girls team, but new provincial legislation might mean she will have to give up the sport she loves.
Alberta’s Fairness and Safety in Sport Act (Bill 29) was passed on Sept. 1 and will affect youth (ages 12 and up) in the province. The new rules dictate that athletes who wish to participate in “female-only leagues, classes or divisions be limited to athletes whose sex recorded at birth is female.” The regulations effectively ban trans athletes from playing women’s amateur sports and do not pertain to those competing in male-only amateur sports or out-of-province athletes travelling to Alberta. Athletes must confirm in writing that they meet all eligibility requirements in order to compete. Schools have already begun sending forms for students (or their parents) to fill out, should they wish to participate in girls’ sports.
Critics, including Egale and the Confederation of Alberta Faculty Associations argue that the Fairness and Safety in Sport Act is anything but fair and concerns both trans and cis people, given the discriminatory nature of the bill and infringement on charter rights.
@jcubedhax this is soooo upsetting #transrights #womenssports #canada ♬ original sound – Coach Jackie J
Advocates say the ban is a discriminatory attack on trans athletes, but the legislation will affect all girls in the province and potentially spur more public policing of women, girls and gender presentation.
According to provincial documents, if someone wants to challenge an athlete’s gender, they can do so. The wording of the bill is passive and vague, so anyone can make a complaint to the governing sports division or board, and the athlete or their parents—if the athlete is a minor—will have to provide their birth registration documents to prove that their sex at birth was female. Birth certificates are not accepted because they can be amended. It is then up to the board to determine the athlete’s eligibility, and if an accusation is made in “bad faith,” it is also up to the board to decide on a proper course of action. Boards must also provide the ministry with case reports and outcomes.
Though Iris is cis, she is worried about what the bill will mean for her participation in fencing and has told her mother she doesn’t want anyone to scrutinize and question her gender. Even though she is 11, Iris’s school has already sent her a form for her parents to fill out. “School is a place where you should be safe, but how can I keep her safe knowing that anybody at any time can accuse her of not being a female at birth and that the burden of proof is on her?” says Li. “If this is an act to promote fairness and to protect our children, then why do I feel fearful? Why am I scared for my child? Why is my child scared?”
The government states that the purpose of the bill is “the promotion of fairness and safety in sport” and that it “establishes a balanced approach to protect the integrity of female athletic competitions.”
Detractors say it stigmatizes and punishes those in the trans and gender-diverse community while creating a distraction from other issues in the province such as overcrowding in classrooms, the province-wide teachers’ strike and the restructuring of their healthcare system.
The bill further inflames the misconception that trans women athletes have an advantage over their cis counterparts. According to a 2022 Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport study, there is “no firm evidence that indicates that trans women have a consistent and measurable overall performance benefit.” The report states: “Trans women are over-sensationalized in media due to the moral gender panic that surrounds their experience.” Less mentioned in the safety narrative is the long history of exclusion of women (trans and cis) from competitive sport, which resulted in the introduction of a “women’s category of sport” in the first place.
@xtramagazine Trans women and girls in sports … many jurisdictions are moving to ban their participation. But these trans sports bans are often based in bad science and misinformation. What are the facts? In this edition of Xtra Explains, we break down everything you need to know about fairness in kids sports with the fact-checked journalism you need 🏳️⚧️⚽️ #fyp #foryoupage #lgbtqnews #explainer #explained #trans #sports #womenssports #alberta ♬ original sound – Xtra Magazine Advertisement
Critics wonder about the focus on amateur and youth sports, pointing out how it could potentially have detrimental effects on girls’ participation in sports overall. Since the bill came into effect at the beginning of September, enrollment in girls’ sports at schools has already decreased. According to Canadian Women & Sport, an organization dedicated to advancing gender equity in sport, significant imbalances already exist between boys’ and girls’ levels of participation, with half of Canadian girls dropping out of organized sport by age 17.
Nerissa Hymers, a parent and director of Junior Operations of E-Ville Roller Derby in Edmonton, shares this concern. Her 12-year-old daughter Eibhlinn is in Grade 7 and has decided not to try out for any school sports teams because of Bill 29. Had it not been for the new rules, Eibhlinn would have considered junior volleyball this year. “It’s further diminishing accessibility and access to sports,” says Hymers. “This is ultimately just to decimate girls’ sports. Gender markers aren’t what make people gifted at a sport.”
Bill 29 is the latest in a series of controversial bills attacking trans rights in the province. Bill 26, the Health Statutes Amendment Act, passed in October 2024, prohibits gender reassignment surgery and hormone drug therapy for all minors, and Bill 27, the Education Amendment Act, which was passed in December 2024, mandates parental consent if a student wants to change their name and pronouns as well as opt-ins for sex-ed courses.
Two LGBTQ2S+ advocacy organizations, Egale Canada and Skipping Stone, have voiced opposition to the Fairness and Safety in Sport Act, and, along with five individuals, launched constitutional challenges against Bills 26 and 27 earlier this year, resulting in a temporary injunction blocking the trans healthcare bill.
After Bill 29 came into effect this fall, a leaked government memo sent on Sept. 10 stated that Alberta intends to invoke the Notwithstanding Clause to override charter rights for up to five years, ensuring that all three bills will be implemented. Smith stated, shortly after the memo leaked, that the government had not made an official decision yet.
@xtramagazine Alberta premier Danielle Smith reportedly plans to use the Notwithstanding Clause to force through her government’s three pieces of anti-trans legislation. According to an internal memo obtained by the Canadian Press, Alberta officials are being directed by Smith’s office to secretly assemble background information and legal implications related to invoking the clause. The plan is to bring that info back to cabinet on Oct. 21, before the legislature resumes sitting two days later. Last year, Alberta introduced and passed three pieces of anti-trans legislation. One related to restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors, another banned trans women and girls from women’s sports and another mandated that schools inform parents if a student chooses to go by a different name or pronouns for gender reasons. All three bills passed into law last December. But they quickly faced legal challenges from doctors and LGBTQ2S+ advocacy groups, who argued that the laws violate the charter rights of trans kids in Alberta. But the notwithstanding clause is a way of getting around all of that. We break down how Smith plans to use the clause, and what precedent it could set. 👨⚖️🏳️⚧️ #alberta #lgbtqnews #albertanews #daniellesmith #albertapolitics ♬ original sound – Xtra Magazine Advertisement
“Using the notwithstanding clause sets a precedent that the Charter of Rights of Canadians is a suggestion,” says Sara Kim, a community care coordinator at Skipping Stone, which provides programs, services and support for trans and gender-diverse people in Calgary. The act is discriminatory and invasive because of the documentation required to prove that an athlete is female, and it infringes upon one’s right to privacy.” That should scare everybody,” says Kim, who is also a trans athlete, hockey player and board member with the Calgary Inclusive Hockey Association.
Kim previously played on two women’s hockey teams but now plays recreationally in a co-ed league, which means they can still keep playing. The government’s suggestion to accommodate trans athletes is to expand and create co-ed divisions or separate leagues. However, Kim says the suggestion is impractical and unrealistic. There are not enough players to fill a separate league, and there are no guidelines on how to make it happen. At the time of writing, there has been no additional information from the government on grants, funding or resources to help leagues expand.
“Kids just want to play sports with their friends, no matter if that’s with boys or with girls,” says Kim. “We’re not out here competing for the Stanley Cup.” She emphasizes that playing team sports was an important part of their transition and credits the camaraderie with helping them build social skills, create connections and manage their mental health. “Joining any organized sport, especially as a trans person, is very intimidating and scary.” Kim has played with men’s teams before, but says a lot of trans women don’t necessarily feel comfortable playing with men. She says playing with women and being treated as a part of the team helped them develop their confidence. “Making friends and connections through sports is what literally saved my life, and was able to get me to integrate into public and society because I [felt] normal and comfortable because I [had] friends.”
Kim hopes to see more allies speak up against Bill 29 and support the trans community. She gives the example of how citizens, parents and librarians came together to protest the Alberta school book ban, which stated that books deemed “sexually explicit” must be removed from school libraries. The government eventually revised its policy to clarify that written descriptions of sex were acceptable, but images and illustrations were not. The change came after Edmonton’s public school board put together a list of more than 200 titles to be removed, including classics like Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and others.
She wants to see the same action around the sports ban bill. “Unfortunately, with this issue, it’s going to affect everybody.”
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