Finland made a special show of virtue signaling to the transgender community by showcasing a 59-year-old transgender farmer who bore the country’s flag during the opening ceremony for the European Figure Skating Championships in Espoo, Finland, on Wednesday.
Minna Maaria Antikainen is a 59year old biological male. He was previously known under Markku-Pekka Antikainen. Antikainen did a kind of slow-motion, shakey turn around the ice and then fell. A young girl stepped up to assist him.
Antikainen ended the spectacle waving Finland’s national colors.
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“The opening ceremony will present skaters at various levels, from non-professionals to top athletes. On the ice, we will see Single Skaters, Synchronized Skaters, and Pairs. Included among the performers are Figure Skater Minna-Maaria Antikainen, who defines herself as a gender-neutral woman, adaptive skating performers, and a male synchronized skating team,”Helena Tienhaara, coach at The Post Millennial said this ahead of the event.
Outi Wuorenheimo was clearly effected by criticism and tried to justify the inclusion of the older trans skater.
“We want to change the figure skating world by showing that talking about a skater’s weight is not the top priority, but muscular, healthy athletes may also succeed at the top level. It is important that we have different-looking skaters of various sizes in the competitions,” Wuorenheimo exclaimed.
In the official press release, it is also clear that Antikainen was selected for this competition. “diversity.”
“Figure skating is a very conservative sport with various strict rules. In international competitions, same-sex skating pairs are not allowed, and there is no category for non-binary skaters. I hope that every country will start working for equality and diversity in the field”, Wuorenheimo exclaimed.
“We want to change the figure skating world by showing that talking about a skater’s weight is not the top priority, but muscular, healthy athletes may also succeed at the top level. It is important that we have different-looking skaters of various sizes in the competitions,” Wuorenheimo added.
“If we want to change the world, we have to actively and visibly work for it and create rules that match our values. This is just the beginning of the journey, but we have the possibility to go on and lead the way,”Official conclusion to the Skating competition.
Taitoluistelija Minna-Maaria Antikainen, 56, on vahva mies ja upea nainen samassa kehossa. Tänään maailmanlaajuisesti vietettävän transihmisten muistopäivän kunniaksi erikoisartikkeli on nyt vapaasti kaikkien luettavissa. https://t.co/0nlOOUn0dd#TransDayofRemembrance #joensuu pic.twitter.com/E9Uj8ySVcE
— Sanomalehti Karjalainen (@KarjalainenFi) November 20, 2019
Interlude with art:
MarkkuPekka Antikainen (59 years old) began figure skating in 50. He now competes as a woman. “Minna-Maaria”Opening ceremony for the European Figure Skating Championships #Espoo2023, to mixed effect.https://t.co/BP4tkfL5UO https://t.co/3qgDdIMsW3 pic.twitter.com/blQjSPwoRr
— ystrïya (we/us) (@yatakalam) January 28, 2023
For many years, transgender athletes have been at the center of much controversy within sports. While some sports embrace athletes who are born to compete against biological women, others go the other way.
Recently, World Athletics officials gave in to radical trans agenda and announced that they would let men compete as women if they posed as women.
The NCAA approved rules in 2022 that allowed trans athletes to participate under the gender they chose. These regulations were claimed to be similar with those adopted by the U.S.A and International Olympic Committees.
Rugby, on the other hand banned male athletes from participating as females.
While several states in the United States have introduced bills to ban transgender athletes from schools, others have moved to restrict trans athletes to a certain degree. Last month, the Ohio Senate rejected a bill which would have prohibited men from being in competition with women.
At least 18 states have considered laws banning men from competing in women’s sports, a movement that accelerated in 2022 when UPenn transgender swimmer Lia Thomas coasted to victory in the NCAA championships against his female competitors despite his mediocre record when swimming as a man.
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