#84 - Chris Mosier - The Man Who Changed The Olympics and Steered a Social Shift

A Runner’s Life

It’s not often that I get the privilege of speaking to someone who is the first in their field and blazing a trail for others to follow. In this conversation I spoke with the international athlete and history maker Chris Mosier. In 2015, he was the spark for changing the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) policy on transgender athletes to provide such individuals with the right to represent their country at the Olympic Games.

In 2016, Chris was pivotal in additional policy change within the IOC, by expanding the rights of transgender athletes to take part in the Olympic Games without the previously required necessity of gender reassignment surgery.

“I was able to not only get policies created and policies changed. I was able to change the Olympic policy in 2016. All of those things happened because I thought what’s the worst that could happen... If they say no, so I’ll try again. I’ll try a different way. I thought there was no reason why I should compromise or give up a part of myself... There is a real opportunity, for who do I wish that I would’ve seen when I was a young person, and I can now set-out to be that person for the younger version of myself and for every kid that needs to see that today.”

Chris is a hall of fame triathlete, All-American duathlete, 2-time National Champion, and a 6-time member of Team USA. In 2015 he became the first known transgender man to represent the United States in international competition.

He is talented across multiple disciplines including race walking and was the first openly transgender athlete to compete in an Olympic Trials in a category different than their sex assigned at birth.

We explore his work, mindset as an athlete and an advocate for change.

Chris also explains based visual assumptions on gender, how people have treated him differently from the perspective of looking at a white woman, compared to looking at a white man. And how this furthers his advocacy of human rights across colour and for the LGBTQ+ rights movement.

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His social links are:

• Instagram: @thechrismosier
• Website: https://www.transathlete.com/

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This episode is sponsored by Tracksmith, a brand which actively represents and supports the development of a runner’s life in the running community.

If you want to win a £200/$250

Tracksmith voucher, follow the instructions set at the start of the podcast.

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