Gender verification in sport as a surveillance practice: An inside and outside perception

Abstract

This paper analyzes gender verification of sportswomen as one of the surveillance practices present in today's sports. Caster Semenya's case is the starting point for a discussion about gender verification, eligibility criteria and the presence of intersexual athletes. The article's main purpose is to show the role of surveillance in enforcing the boundary between sex and gender. It refers to concepts of surveillant scopophilia, soft biometrics, and the 'othered', (un)natural body and heteronormative body. The paper is based on the author's individual in-depth interviews with sportswomen, coaches and sports activists, and representatives of feminist organizations. This selection of respondents reveals how surveillance practices relating to sex verification are perceived both within and outside sport. © The author(s), 2014.