Abstract
Jane English, a pioneer in feminist sport philosophy, mentioned one simple idea that has received insufficient attention, but its consequences are of great importance for decreasing discrimination in sport. English suggested that female athletes should be allowed to 'move up' to the male category and compete against male athletes if they wished to.
She drew this strategy from boxing, in which boxers in lower weight categories can choose to 'move up'-to compete in a higher category (although this is not permitted in reverse-boxers cannot 'move down'). This strategy could be used in other sports and for other categories, but it is not often chosen.
It would suggest that talented athletes do not always need 'category protection'-they do not need to be protected more than necessary, which raises the question of the justification of the category in the first place. On investigation, some justifications may have less to do with sport-rationality, than with reasons such as paternalism, ableism, ageism or sexism, or organizational reasons.
I shall clarify the notion of 'categories' in sport, and distinguish four types of categories with respect to their openness: 'open' category, 'semi-open' category, 'closed' category, and 'overlapping' categories. This paper advocates the wider use of open and semi-open or at least overlapping categories (where possible), and it argues against the excessive use of closed categories-those made by prescribing set limits.
The benefit is clear: athletes who are skilled enough to compete in the higher category should be allowed to 'move up', if they wish. With respect to sex/gender, this strategy would partly help to diminish the strength of the binary distinction, and so it can be considered a first and easy step towards a more integrated sport.
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