Transgender Olympian Laurel Hubbard: ‘I’m looking forward to this being the end of my journey as an athlete’

Transgender Olympic weightlifter Laurel Hubbard reflected on her historic participation in the Tokyo Olympics, saying she’s looking forward to the Games being “the end of my journey” as an athlete. 

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Hubbard said she never entered the games for the exposure of publicity, according to clips published by The Guardian.

However, she acknowledged that her involvement has been of “considerable interest” to some.

“While I recognize that my involvement in sport is a topic of considerable interest to some, in some ways I’m looking forward to this being the end of — I suppose — my journey as an athlete and the attention that comes from it,” Hubbard said.

Hubbard, a 43-year-old New Zealander, competed in the women’s over-87 kilogram competition on Monday, but she was eliminated after failing to complete her first three lifts in the “snatch” event.

Hubbard began competing in weightlifting in 2012, five years after she transitioned, according to The New York Times. In 2017, she garnered social media backlash after winning three titles.

Hubbard said Tuesday that she tries not to dwell on the negative coverage because “it makes a hard job even harder.”

“One thing I will say though is that I think often, a lot of negative coverage and negative perception is not really based on any sort of evidence or principle but rather it’s based on emotion that people are often reacting, out of fear or discomfort. I hope that in time, they will open themselves up to a broader perspective,” she said.

Tokyo is the first time openly transgender athletes have competed in the Olympics, The Associated Press reported.

Quinn, of the Canadian women’s soccer team, is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns. Chelsea Wolfe, who is transgender, is a reserve on the U.S. women’s BMX FreeStyle team.

Also in the Games is skateboarder Alana Smith, who identifies as nonbinary, according to the AP.