Women with high testosterone levels and Sports.

Innie Udoeyop Mr.Rob Hollett SBI4U Monday, January 31, 2011

Testosterone is a hormone that is most likely associated with male sexuality. It is responsible for the growth of male sexual organs, deepening of male voice, facial hair and sexual behavior of men. Although testosterone is important for men, it also has a big role for females also. The hormone estrogen, is responsible for development of breasts, the vagina, and the menstrual cycle, is made from testosterone. It is said that women have about fifteen to twenty times less testosterone than men. (Dvorsky, 2009) Testosterone is most important for athletes as it helps build muscle mass and allows athletes to train harder and longer. Using performance enhancement drugs dates back to 776 BC. Ancient athletes ate sheep s testicles as a method to increase their testosterone. (Blood Doping)Since, there have been many studies regarding testosterone and sports. A study conducted by Passelergue and Lac (1999) found elevated testosterone levels in wrestlers compared to age matched controls. Essentially it goes hand-in-hand; sports that are more physically demanding have athletes with higher testosterone levels. Therefore a runner, male or female, with a higher level of testosterone than their opponents will do better. This is where the problem lies. According to the World Anti-Doping Agency, testosterone, and hormones that boost testosterone levels, such as growth hormone, are the most widely abused performance enhancers. Many athletes elevate their testosterone levels to increase muscle mass or increase stamina. This is illegal. On the other hand there are certain disorders of the endocrine system that may cause an imbalance in testosterone and other hormone levels. These levels may be abnormally high or low depending on the disorder. (Melton, 2010) This puts forth a serious issue in the sports industry today: Should athletes with naturally high levels of testosterone be allowed to compete in professional sports?

Caster Semenya, the 800-meter champion from South Africa is a hermaphrodite, meaning that she has both male and female sexual characteristics. She has no womb or ovaries, but instead has male testes insider her body which are producing a lot of testosterone, which in turn. She produces three times the testosterone that a normal female produces. (The whacky story behind Caster Semenya) Caster does not have to take steroids because nature has given her a constant advantage over female runners. The Inter Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) stated that Caster is not at fault. The South African government was outraged at the international embarrassment that the IAAF brought upon Caster Semenya. The government fought for her rights and even withdrew from the IAAF committee. The country also filed a complaint with the Unite Nations Commissioner of Human Rights over Semenya s treatment, saying the tests she completed are gross and severe undermining of rights and privacy. (Hart, 2009) Caster Semenya s case is the most modern example of a woman with immense levels of testosterone in the sport s world. The IAAF in the end said that Caster Semenya will keep her medal because her case was not related to a drug abuse matter. (Magnay, 2009)Many people believe that she should be stripped of her medal and banned from all further international competitions unless she has surgery and removes the male testes inside of her. As the facts stated earlier, she really is testosterone doping, but doing so in a natural manner. Caster Semenya also though may be an individual with Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome. Androgen insensitivity means that the receptor sites that exist on cells to which androgen hormones bind do not hook up right with the androgens. (Laden, 2009) This, then, means that the androgens do nothing at all. This is caused by a mutation in the AR Gene. When a person has AIS, the testes exist because of the undifferentiated gonad. Meanwhile the regular

female plumbing and other female secondary characteristics develop externally; this is basically what happens when there is an absence of androgen. However, internal female organs are repressed. In summary, Semenya has AIS, and she has internal testes, with no internal plumbing, but has an external female body with a blind vagina . But they still produced testosterone.

Mary Decker Slaney in 1996, at the age of 37 qualified for the 5000 meters race at the Atlanta Olympics. She was one of the athletes that were routinely tested by the United States Olympic Committee for illegal drugs. Slaney was reported to have a testosterone epitestosterone level higher than the 6:1 ratio that international rules allow. (Litsky, 1999) Epitestosterone is an inactive isomer of testosterone. It is a natural steroid that is produced independently of testosterone and it has not been shown to enhance athletic performance. (Testosterone / Epitestosterone Ratio: How is it significant?) The normal ratio of testosterone and epitesterone in urine is roughly 1:1, but the IAAF states that a ratio higher than 6:1 signifies proof of abuse. However the T/E ratio always varies in humans because other than steroids, other hormones that are body uses might be unbalanced causing the T/E ratio to either spike or shoot down. (Testosterone / Epitestosterone Ratio: How is it significant?) Mary Decker Slaney and her lawyers argued that the test is unreliable for women, because women in ranging from thirty to forty years old are taking birth control pills, which would cause an imbalance of testosterone. Both the USOC and IAAF know that things other than doping can cause a women s T/E ratio to go above 6:1. said Slaney s lawyer at a hearing. Despite her appeal, in

June 1997 the IAAF banned Decker from competition. Two years later she was reinstated by USOC and was supposed to be cleared for competition by the IAAF, even though she was supposed to be cleared, during an arbitration panel she was ruled guilty and the IAAF through an old ban stripped her of her silver medal that she had won at the 1997 World Indoor Championships. (Rowbottom, 1999) Decker and Semenya s conditions were similar but also had their differences. Decker pleaded that the reason for her high testosterone levels were her birth control pills. Meanwhile Semenya is a hermaphrodite, which ultimately caused her to have very high levels of testosterone. Both cases are legitimate and indicate the current issue regarding natural substances that increase testosterone. These two women make people question if women like them, with natural high levels of testosterone, should be allowed to compete in international competitions. Nineteen year old tennis sensation Sarah Gronert is currently ranked at world no.555. She is a rising star in the Women s Tennis Association, and is expected to be Top %0 in the next couple of years. However Sarah was born a hermaphrodite. She has both male and female sex organs, which in turn has led to a rapid increase in testosterone. (Hodgkinson, 2009) Since Sarah was a teen she was subjected to constant comments about her sexuality. This made it hard for her to continue competing in the circuit. (Sharma, 2009) At age nineteen she decided to deal with the situation and have her male genitalia removed to become a full biological woman. Although she now was classified as a full-fledged woman, her opponents complained of her having an unfair advantage of masculine powers. Scholomo Tzoref, a coach of a player

whom Sarah defeated said, There is no girl who can hit serves like that, not even Venus Williams. He also went on to say, This is not a woman, it s a man. Gronert was on the brink of quitting her career, but she chose to fight, and filed a complaint to the WTA. The WTA stated that she satisfies the eligibility criteria to compete in a women s game. . (Sharma, 2009) There are many questions that get thrown around with woman that naturally have high testosterone. Sarah Gronert was discriminated against even after she had her male organs removed. The argument is that it is not fair to punish females that were born with male sex organs. It isn t their fault. There have been many incidents regarding women with high levels of testosterone or born with male sex organs. Santhi Soundarajan, was boring in an Indian village. She won silver at the Asian Games in Qatar, but was asked to undergo a sex test, which she failed. This led Asian Games officials to strip her of her medal. She was diagnosed with AIS, androgen insensitivity syndrome, a condition where a genetic male is resistant to androgens, which makes the body appear externally female. Her case was very much like Semenya s but she did not fight her case. (The sad story of Santhi Soundarajan, 2007) The testosterone that these women produce naturally happens because of the lack of androgen receptors that an AIS person has. The feedback system maintaining the level of testosterone produced in the testes is not really working. This is due to: no message being sent to the testes. This explains why these women have such high numbers of testosterone, therefore aiding them in their athletic abilities.

All in all, testosterone is a huge factor in the sports world. Even though it is just a hormone associated with male sexuality, it is ultimately responsible for the build-up of muscle mass and allows athletes to train longer and faster. Even though according to the World AntiDoping Agency, testosterone, and other hormones that boost testosterone are illegal; there are humans with a natural high level of testosterone. These people that have high levels of testosterone are usually born with male sex organs that give rise to the production of testosterone or they have an imbalance of hormones in their endocrine system. This brings forth a serious issue in sports today. Should female athletes with natural high levels of testosterone due to the hermaphroditic or an imbalance of hormones be allowed to compete in international sports? There have been many women that have suffered under this thought, and many women that have not. This issue poses serious thought from athletic organizations today in the world. Specific examples like Caster Semenya, Mary Decker Slaney, Sarah Gronert, and, Santhi Soundarajan have all experienced judgment because of their hermaphroditic organs and hormone imbalances. Should they be punished? Or should they be left to dominate the modern world s athletic scene. It is a serious issue in society today.

1960 words.

Bibliography
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