A Brazilian volleyball player in Albania has been forced to undergo a gender determination test after concerns were raised by rival teams. Nayara Ferreira says she feels shocked and devastated.
Brazilian volleyball player Nayara Ferreira has said that the decision by the Albanian Volleyball Federation (FSHV) to conduct a gender test and suspend her from the game has left her deeply shaken. “I feel like I’m devastated, like I’m losing my mind, because I think a lot about why this happened to me, why they did this to me,” said Ferreira, who plays in the top women’s volleyball category in Albania.
"Every day in my room I ask myself this question and I still don't know the answer. I don't understand why I'm in this situation," she told DW. "They asked me to take a gender test. I've played in seven countries, including Saudi Arabia. I've never been asked such a question before."
Ferreira was suspended in October by the FSV after two rival teams submitted documents and requested a review of the case. One of the FSV's requests states that "relevant analyses will be carried out to verify the natural physical performance and determine the gender of the Dinamo team player, Estephanie Goulart Ferreira Nayara."
Her club, Dinamo in Albania, called the decision absurd and an insult to a veteran player with a distinguished career. The Brazilian has been suspended for three weeks, missing three matches, and says she has faced total silence during that time. “I have no words to describe exactly how I feel,” she added. “Why are you [FSHV] doing this to me? Just because you look at my face, just because you look at my hair?”
Support from the team
Ferreira confirmed that she took the test willingly, but only to help the club. "I don't need to prove to anyone that I'm a woman, because I am a woman. That's 100%." Dinamo team captain Elena Bego said the situation had been very difficult for the team. "It was partly my job to break the news to the other girls. We were all shocked - this case is very scandalous," Bego told DW. "We have supported Nayara the whole time, because we know that she is a girl."
Dinamo coach Orlando Koja added that Nayara's absence had also had a major sporting impact, as the team was left lacking in important matches without a key player.
For Ferreira, this situation has had a personal impact, but she thinks it is also something bigger than her individual case.
“I think that after this situation we need to reflect on what respect means. Because with things like this they are destroying women in sports,” she said. The issue of gender identity in women’s sports has become an increasingly sensitive topic in recent years, especially after the global controversy surrounding Imane Khelif, the Algerian boxer who won gold at the Paris Olympics last summer. This year, the World Athletics Federation also decided to make gender tests mandatory for all women competing./DW
