While I very much welcome the Scottish Football Association’s ruling, it should never have come to this.

Women and girls should never have had to fight for their right to play football, run, swim – whatever their choice of sport is – in a fair and safe way.

Yet it has taken a Supreme Court judgment for public bodies and sporting organisations to wake up to what I and other campaigners have been saying for years. 

That it is not fair nor right to allow men to compete in women’s sport. No one should be allowed to pick which category they wish to compete in.

I am not saying this because I am anti trans. I am saying this because I am pro women and pro fairness.

It is a fact that the impact of testosterone cannot be reversed. It is a fact that men have better bone density. It is a fact that men are built differently from women. It is a fact that they punch harder and are stronger than women. It’s proven in science and it’s not just me saying it.

So allowing men to compete against women immediately puts women and girls at a disadvantage both physically and mentally.

And yet there are still competative sports in the UK that allow male-born athletes to compete against women. Sports like some martial arts. It can be season, if not career ending to a female athlete.

Former Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies MBE says it is deeply unfair to allow men to compete in women¿s sport

Former Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies MBE says it is deeply unfair to allow men to compete in women’s sport

There is now an issue with insurance as many companies will not cover injuries caused by men on females in women and girls’ sport. Because allowing males to compete in the female category is against the law and should not happen.

Men kick 50 per cent harder and punch 160 per cent harder than women.

So take boxing for example – two athletes of the same size and weight, but because one is born a male they are immediately at a huge physical advantage over a female.

When you punch 160 per cent harder than your opponent whose bone density is lower because they are a woman, it does not take a genius to figure out the odds of a serious injury.

We all know what happened in Paris. What we witnessed at the Olympic boxing last summer was, in my opinion, nothing short of a disgrace and criminally negligent.

There is no point in these men saying, ‘But I have never been challenged going into a changing room’ or ‘Nobody’s ever told me they don’t want me on their team’.

All that means is that more and more women and girls are self-excluding because they don’t feel safe, they don’t feel their rights are being safeguarded, they don’t feel it is fair. And you know what? They are right.

Women’s sport was thrown under the bus. It was all done very quickly in order not to hurt the feelings of a very small group of men. There were no consideration for women and girls and no consultation.

Women were once again treated as second class citizens.

Now every sporting governing body must follow the SFA who now join athletics, cycling, swimming and rugby excludiing biological men from their female sports. The English FA have fudged it by saying transgender players have to apply for approval.

They and all the sporting bodies who have ignored this issue must do now what they should have been doing from the start – stand up for all female athletes.

I would never have imagined that we were here having this conversation – and fight – in the 21st century. The fact we are in this position is nothing short of shameful.

And even more shamefully, we won’t hear the word sorry.

Those that bowed to Stonewall activists, who misrepresented EA law and got it so wrong, they are not going to put their hands up and apologise. But heads should roll.

It is tough being a female athlete. There’s less sponsorship money available – under 5 per cent of it all goes to women and girls – and you always feel you need to fight that little bit harder for your place at the top table.

So the playing field is not level and it never has been. But there was never any need to make it artificially even less equal.

It doesn’t matter if you are excellent or mediocre in your sport – you should be able to partake without the fear and worry of being pitted against someone that clearly should not be there. All females deserve fair sport not just the elite, which has too often been the compromise, All that does is destroying the pathways for women to get there. Where do we think the elite come from?

I have been and will continue to be outspoken about this. It does upset some people, of course it does, because they don’t want to be told they are wrong.

The abuse I have endured about my looks, threats to my children, about my abilities as an athlete, has been horrendous. It has been extremely personal. But I’ve learnt to use it to make me more determined.

No amount of vile outpouring of hatred from the same type of men will shut me – or women like me who care about fairness – up.

Anyone who follows me on social media will know where I stand on this. I have already called for women to come together and fund legal challenges wherever the law is deliberately ignored or broken.

Because if we don’t act, nobody will do it on our behalf. Enough is enough.

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