UVic, David Strong C126 & Online
Zoom registration required if joining online 

MEET & GREET
Join Dr. Joanna Harper for an informal drop-in meet & greet

Despite the fact that transgender athletes are highly under-represented, there is much controversy over the inclusion of trans women in the female category of sports. This talk will start with a look at the complexity of sexual biology, and a brief overview of transgender terminology.

The talk will examine a few population studies to test the hypothesis that trans women will take over women’s sports if they are allowed to compete with cisgender women. The main portion of the presentation will examine published studies on transgender athletes and will also look at some studies on athletic performance in non-athletic trans people. Data from a meta-analysis which is under peer review will also be presented.  Some suggestions for policy on transgender athletes will be presented along with the examination of some recent trends in policy.

Dr Joanna Harper earned her PhD in exercise science from Loughborough University in January 2024. Her area of study was the performance of transgender athletes. She recently completed a position as a post-doctoral scholar at Oregon Health & Science University and has started a position at the International Centre for Olympic Studies at Western University in London, Ontario, Canada.

Dr Harper has published several papers in peer-reviewed journals on transgender athletes. Data gathered at Loughborough University has yielded two published studies: a longitudinal study on the effects of gender affirming hormone therapy on the performance of transgender athletes and a systematic review of hormone-based changes in non-athletic transgender women. Dr Harper had previously published the first peer-reviewed study examining the performance of transgender athletes. She is the author of the Rowman and Littlefield book Sporting Gender: The history, science, and stories of transgender and intersex athletes.

Dr Harper has worked closely with international and national sports-governing bodies as they grapple with the complex issues surrounding eligibility policy for transgender and intersex athletes, including the International Olympic Committee, World Athletics, Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), and World Rowing. She speaks frequently at international meetings and symposia on the topics of transgender and intersex athletes.

Dr Harper’s interest in transgender athletic performance grew out of her own gender transition and the subsequent speed loss that she encountered as a sub-elite distance runner. Prior to her late-life career change, Dr Harper worked for several years as a medical physicist. She has a master’s degree in medical physics and an undergraduate degree in physics; both earned at Western University.