Strongman bans alleged trans woman from competition after she won women’s title
One of the competing women was disqualified from the Strongman competition because she was thought to be trans The post Strongman bans alleged trans woman from competition after she won women’s title appeared first on Outsports.
Mark
At the Official Strongman Games World Championships 2025 in Arlington, Texas last weekend, the women’s open championship came down to a single point.
Jammie Booker, a Philadelphia-based athlete and personal trainer, took advantage of a last bobble by past world champion Andrea Thompson of Great Britain.
According to some press reports, Thompson was upset about the outcome and rumors abounded for the last few days.
Strongman Corporation, organizers of the event, stated Tuesday that Booker was stripped of the title and disqualified because she violated the event’s policy that states only an athlete whose birth certificate states they are female could compete in a women’s category.
“Had we been aware, or had this been declared at any point before or during the competition, this athlete would not have been permitted to compete in the Woman’s Open category,” the organizers stated via Facebook.– “We are clear, competitors can only compete in the category for the biological sex recorded at birth.”
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The swift, sudden arc of this over the last two days leads to some questions. The first being how did any of this come to light?
By the admission of the organizers, Booker entered the contest as the woman she is. She came into the contest off of two event in 2025. She was first place as a regional meet in Washington State in June, and was second at the North America’s Strongest Women competition at Victoriaville, Que. in July.
She has not made any public statement on her gender identity in any regard. Even the usual suspects in the anti-trans media that always raise cain about this are using the term “alleged transgender athlete” in regards to her.
There is also the policy itself, which was a part of their statement here but there is no record of any such public announcement about a policy change prior to this event nor is this policy present on their website as we went to press. In fact when you access the website, it shows policy largely in line with previous International Olympic Committee regulations dated back to 2023. Such policy allows transgender women to compete in women’s events provided certain standards are met in regards to serum testosterone levels.
Then there is a critical question. Strongman official stated there was an investigation. What initiated that investigation? What did it entail over two days? What did Booker have to provide? What was uncovered?
The way this looks, the policy was put in after allegations as Booker left the victory podium on Sunday November 23.
There is a past history in regard to this sport and transphobia. Strongman Canada banned Audrey Yun from competition in 2024 after the British Columbia strength athlete pushed back on bigotry she received by other athletes, spurred on by event officials. Yun has since left to pursue powerlifting in a federation that has affirmed her inclusion.
“They have smiles and niceties in the person, but it hurt knowing that they are holding these beliefs inside their heads,” Yun said of her experiences in Strongman. “I didn’t want to be an activist or an advocate. I just wanted to train and compete in a sport that I thought was cool and originally told me that I was welcome to compete and I was fully green lit and ready to go.”
Booker may be saying similar thoughts given the way she has be characterized by organizers and amplified by anti-trans outlets more than eager to signal boost.
“We are disappointed on behalf of all those who fairly and legitimately took part that the attention has been taken away from their efforts which deserve celebration,” Strongman organizers said in this statement. “We stand with them and stand with fairness.”
Given the questions surrounding all of this, that last sentence rings hollow. Whether Jammie Booker is cis or trans is secondary to the question of what fairness did she receive here? Perhaps more will come to light, but from the look of things an athlete was disqualified but the decision appears false.
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The post Strongman bans alleged trans woman from competition after she won women’s title appeared first on Outsports.
