Foekje Dillema
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Foekje Dillema, was a Dutch
track and field
athlete.
Dillema was named "athlete of the match" in 1949 after winning the 100 metres
and 200 metres
race during a tournament in London
. She was an important rival for another Dutch athlete Fanny Blankers-Koen
, who won four gold medal
s during the 1948 Summer Olympics
and was voted "Female Athlete of the Century" by the IAAF
in 1999.
In 1950 Dillema was expelled for life by the Dutch National Athletics Federation. Dillema had refused to go to a manadtory sex test. Her national record of 24.1 seconds for the 200 metres was erased. This decision is still discussed in the Netherlands. On the 13th of July 1950 Foekje Dillema was stopped on her way to an international meeting in France
by the Dutch Athletics authorities. The authorities expelled her for life. Foekje returned back home to Friesland
did not leave her house for at least one year. She lived a quiet life in her home town afterwards. She refused to speak on the subject for the rest of het life.
Dillema was considered female at birth, raised as a girl and lived her life as a woman. Her brothers and sisters never expected her not to be a woman having seen her so many times in the bathtub (her phenotype was female).
Atre her death a forensic test on body cells obtained from her clothing found that there was a Y-chromosome in her DNA. She might have been a genetic mosaic
, having cells with either 46,XX (female) or 46,XY (male) chromosomes, in approximately a one-to-one ratio, in her skin. Professor Anton Grootegoed of the Erasmus MC concluded based on the analyses and on what he had read about Foekje, that Foekje Dillema was female. This means that she would be allowed to race, if she were competing today.
Her biographer Max Dohle however concludes that Foekje, having a Y-chromosome would never have been allowed to race in the last 45 years. The Barr body
test (1966) as well as the test based on PCR (1992) scan for a Y-chromosome or an SRY-gene on the Y-chromosome. All female athletes with a Y-chromosome were expelled from competition from 1966 until 2011. At the end of the century, renowned institutions worldwide protested against the viewpoint of the International Olympic Committee
, causing the mandatory gender test based on the Y chromosome to be abandoned. In case of doubt an athlete can still be tested, by a multidisciplinary medical team, during a large tournament like The Olympic Games. The IAAF tests on testoterone levels since May 2011.
Dohle concludes that Dillema was an intersex suffering from ovotesticular DSD, also known as true hermaphroditism
: 46XX/46XY. She had an operation on her glands in 1952. The SRY-gene on the Y is the testis determining factor, so Foekje may have had infertile testes or ovotestes palpable in her groins. These (ovo)testes produce more testosterone than ovaries. Higher testosterone levels are considered as unfair towards the competition.
Foekje Dillema, was a Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
athlete.
Dillema was named "athlete of the match" in 1949 after winning the 100 metres
100 metres
The 100 metres, or 100-metre dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, it is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896...
and 200 metres
200 metres
A 200 metres race is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 m track, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques are needed to successfully run the race. A slightly shorter race, called the stadion and run on a straight track, was the first...
race during a tournament in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. She was an important rival for another Dutch athlete Fanny Blankers-Koen
Fanny Blankers-Koen
Francina "Fanny" Elsje Blankers-Koen was a Dutch athlete, best known for winning four gold medals at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London. She accomplished this as a 30 year old mother of two, during a time when many disregarded women's athletics...
, who won four gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
s during the 1948 Summer Olympics
1948 Summer Olympics
The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in London, England, United Kingdom. After a 12-year hiatus because of World War II, these were the first Summer Olympics since the 1936 Games in Berlin...
and was voted "Female Athlete of the Century" by the IAAF
International Association of Athletics Federations
The International Association of Athletics Federations is the international governing body for the sport of athletics. It was founded in 1912 at its first congress in Stockholm, Sweden by representatives from 17 national athletics federations as the International Amateur Athletics Federation...
in 1999.
In 1950 Dillema was expelled for life by the Dutch National Athletics Federation. Dillema had refused to go to a manadtory sex test. Her national record of 24.1 seconds for the 200 metres was erased. This decision is still discussed in the Netherlands. On the 13th of July 1950 Foekje Dillema was stopped on her way to an international meeting in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
by the Dutch Athletics authorities. The authorities expelled her for life. Foekje returned back home to Friesland
Friesland
Friesland is a province in the north of the Netherlands and part of the ancient region of Frisia.Until the end of 1996, the province bore Friesland as its official name. In 1997 this Dutch name lost its official status to the Frisian Fryslân...
did not leave her house for at least one year. She lived a quiet life in her home town afterwards. She refused to speak on the subject for the rest of het life.
Dillema was considered female at birth, raised as a girl and lived her life as a woman. Her brothers and sisters never expected her not to be a woman having seen her so many times in the bathtub (her phenotype was female).
Atre her death a forensic test on body cells obtained from her clothing found that there was a Y-chromosome in her DNA. She might have been a genetic mosaic
Mosaic (genetics)
In genetic medicine, a mosaic or mosaicism denotes the presence of two populations of cells with different genotypes in one individual who has developed from a single fertilized egg...
, having cells with either 46,XX (female) or 46,XY (male) chromosomes, in approximately a one-to-one ratio, in her skin. Professor Anton Grootegoed of the Erasmus MC concluded based on the analyses and on what he had read about Foekje, that Foekje Dillema was female. This means that she would be allowed to race, if she were competing today.
Her biographer Max Dohle however concludes that Foekje, having a Y-chromosome would never have been allowed to race in the last 45 years. The Barr body
Barr body
A Barr body is the inactive X chromosome in a female somatic cell, rendered inactive in a process called lyonization, in those species in which sex is determined by the presence of the Y or W chromosome rather than the diploidy of the X or Z...
test (1966) as well as the test based on PCR (1992) scan for a Y-chromosome or an SRY-gene on the Y-chromosome. All female athletes with a Y-chromosome were expelled from competition from 1966 until 2011. At the end of the century, renowned institutions worldwide protested against the viewpoint of the International Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
, causing the mandatory gender test based on the Y chromosome to be abandoned. In case of doubt an athlete can still be tested, by a multidisciplinary medical team, during a large tournament like The Olympic Games. The IAAF tests on testoterone levels since May 2011.
Dohle concludes that Dillema was an intersex suffering from ovotesticular DSD, also known as true hermaphroditism
True hermaphroditism
True hermaphroditism is a medical term for an intersex condition in which an individual is born with ovarian and testicular tissue.There may be an ovary on one side and a testis on the other, but more commonly one or both gonads is an ovotestis containing both types of tissue.It is rare—so...
: 46XX/46XY. She had an operation on her glands in 1952. The SRY-gene on the Y is the testis determining factor, so Foekje may have had infertile testes or ovotestes palpable in her groins. These (ovo)testes produce more testosterone than ovaries. Higher testosterone levels are considered as unfair towards the competition.