Transgender athlete offers to return London Marathon medal amid controversy

Glenique Frank, a biologically male transgender athlete who participated in the female category of the London Marathon, has offered to return his medal after facing backlash for beating approximately 14,000 women in the race.

Frank has now offered to give his medal back to appease his critics. In a BBC interview, Frank talked about becoming a grandmother, which fueled further criticism.

Frank revealed to the New York Post that the London Marathon was the first race in which he could choose his own name and gender. For other races he plans to participate in, such as those in New York City, Tokyo and Boston, his passport name and gender are required.

Frank expressed regret for upsetting his critics, stating that he would willingly return the medal if they felt he had taken the place of a female runner.

According to Frank, he understands that he does not possess a womb, but insisted he did not compete as an elite runner and did not steal any prize money. He pointed out that many women still finished ahead of him, as he completed the race in 4 hours and 11 minutes. Frank maintained that his intention was not to deceive anyone, as he has known since the age of 5 that he was in the wrong body.

Two-time Olympian Mara Yamauchi, who represented Great Britain and placed sixth in the marathon at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, criticized Frank's participation in the female category of the London Marathon. Yamauchi tweeted that males competing in the female category is unfair to female athletes and claimed that nearly 14,000 actual females suffered a worse finish position because of Frank's participation.

This male ran in yesterday’s #LondonMarathon as Glenique Frank in the female category (Mass race) finishing in 6160th place out of 20123. So nearly 14,000 actual females suffered a worse finish position bc of him.

Last month, he ran in the Tokyo Marathon, as Glen Frank, also… https://t.co/u2UmaFBSns

— Mara Yamauchi (@mara_yamauchi) April 24, 2023

Despite the controversy, Frank plans to continue running marathons and intends to enter next year's London race in either the "other" or "male" category to keep everyone satisfied.

Previously, Frank participated in a New York City event wearing a bra and a wig. As a British citizen who identifies as a female, Frank enthusiastically spoke about using "girl power" to help him complete his 17th career marathon after finishing the race in London.