According to Fischer, who played 194 times for the Swedish team, the players had to show their genitals to a physiotherapist by order of the team doctor. The defender says that this was decided about two weeks before the start of the tournament, after complaints were received that the selection of Equatorial Guinea would partly consist of men.
“We were told not to shave down there and to show our genitals. No one understood anything about it, not even about not shaving. There was doubt whether we should do it, but nobody wanted to risk missing the World Cup. That’s why we did it, no matter how painful and humiliating it felt,” she writes in the book I Didn’t Even Say Half Of It.
Uncomfortable situation
Fischer says the doctor and physical therapist went through all the rooms together. “I quickly pulled down my sweatpants and underpants at the same time. The physio nods and says ‘yup’ and then looks at the doctor standing with his back to the doorway. He makes a note and walks down the hallway to knock on the next door. Although we all felt safe within the team, it was a very strange and very uncomfortable situation,” she describes the incident. in an interview with the Swedish newspaper The evening paper.
FIFA’s order for all participating teams to sign a declaration that the players were of the correct gender came two weeks before the start of the tournament, confirmed Swedish team doctor from 2011, Mats Börjesson. “FIFA didn’t do this to bully,” he said. “The sports world strives for the fairest possible competition, where it should not be the case that someone suddenly participates with an unreasonable advantage.”
It is unclear why the Swedish players received a physical examination, when a simple DNA test could have been done, so writes The Guardian. FIFA says it has taken note of Fischer’s story.
