Controversial gold-medal winning transgender weightlifter Laurel Hubbard suffers a major setback in her bid to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics
- Kiwi Laurel Hubbard lost in the first Tokyo Olympics qualifiers in Canberra
- She will attempt to qualify at Oceania Championships in Nauru in April
- Faces competition from Commonwealth Games champion Feagaiga Stowers
- Hubbard, now 42, first transitioned from a woman to a man in her mid 30s
- Piers Morgan called Hubbard out for competing in women's weightlifting
- He believes transgender women should not to compete in female divisions
Weightlifter Laurel Hubbard with two medals after a competition
Transgender weightlifter Laurel Hubbard has suffered a major setback in her bid to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics.
The 42-year-old athlete from New Zealand, who competed in men's weightlifting competitions as Gavin before transitioning seven years ago, broke a continental record before failing in the Australian open qualifiers in Canberra.
Hubbard successfully beat her own Oceania record in the snatch, the first of two lifts in professional weightlifting, by cleanly lifting 133kg.
Things fell apart for her in the clean and jerk, where she was disqualified for not fully extending her elbows during her first two attempts before failing to lift her third and final attempt at 151kg.
The Australian Open was a chance for Hubbard to shore up ranking points in qualifying, which requires lifters to compete in at least six events in an 18-month period before the Games.
She now has one more attempt to qualify for the Olympics at the Oceania Championships in Nauru in April.
Hubbard (pictured) competes during the women's +90kg weightlifting final at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games
The 42-year-old Kiwi athlete (pictured), transitioned from a man to a woman in her mid 30s
She faces strong competition from Commonwealth Games champion Feagaiga Stowers, who didn't compete in Canberra, but will compete in Nauru.
To qualify for the Tokyo Olympics, Hubbard must be the highest ranking weightlifter in Oceania.
It would mark a huge achievement for the weightlifter, who feared she would be forced into retirement after rupturing ligaments in her elbow at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Hubbard has come under heavy fire from Piers Morgan, who claims women's sport is suffering because transgender athletes are competing in female divisions.
The UK broadcaster said 'women's rights to basic fairness and equality are getting destroyed at the alter of political correctness.'
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Morgan argued her admittance into the division automatically puts every other contender at a disadvantage.
'Trans women born with biological male bodies have a massive physical advantage against women born with female bodies in any sport where power & strength are significant factors,' he said.
'This shouldn't be a contentious claim, it's just a rather obvious fact.'
Laurel Hubbard of New Zealand competes in the Women's +90kg Final during the Commonwealth Games
Male-to-female transgender athletes have been invited to compete in the Olympics since 2016 as long as they hit certain targets, including keeping their testosterone levels to a minimum.
Transgender athletes can compete in their chosen divisions without legally changing their gender or undergo surgery for eligibility.
The argument gaining the most traction regarding the competition is that people who are born a male - particularly those who go through puberty as a male - have an unfair advantage due to their genetic make up.
Piers Morgan said 'women's rights to basic fairness and equality are getting destroyed at the alter of political correctness'
Three-time Australian Olympian Tamsyn Lewis previously said there are 'too many unknowns' to allow transgender women to compete against other women.
'If you've grown up a male and had testosterone your bone structure is different to the female, your upper body strength is going to remain, you've got greater lung capacity, a larger heart size,' she said.
'There's too many unknowns about how much going through puberty and being born a male is going to effect your result.'
But others believe transgender athletes are raising the bar for their competitors.
'Trans athletes are fantastic,' one person on Twitter responded to Morgan.
'They have increased women's performance. Stop moaning, improve. Stop being transphobic and embrace these amazing female athletes.
After winning the Pacific Games in 2019, Samoan Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi said: 'I really don't think he - she - should ever participate in this tournament, but I realise we have to be inclusive and we cannot exclude these people.
'They ought to participate in these games in their own category.'
Transgender athletes can compete in their chosen divisions without legally changing their gender or undergo surgery for eligibility. Pictured during the Commonwealth Games
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