[Kirkwood]

You need to realize that there are a lot of extraneous environmental factors that go into setting records, such as track and local weather conditions, and even the time of day to name a few. Run a race at sea level, 3,000 feet, and at 5,000 feet and the results will be different. These things aren’t necessarily noted in the record books. Likewise, will the records have a asterisk noting the winner was a biological male? Probably not.

[kabar]

I realize that the environment can affect times. I used to run marathons and am a rabid track and field fan. My brother is a track coach. My point is that despite the inherent advantages a male has over a woman, it does not necessarily translate into winning, especially against elite women track and field athletes.

The record for the 400 meter hurdle race for woman in 1974 was 56.51 set by Krystyna Kacperczyk (POL) on July 13, 1974 in Augsburg. Telfer won the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 57.53 seconds. No where near the woman's record in 1974.

If you check the times of women in the Olympics in both track and swimming you will see that recent women could have easily won their events competing against men in the past. Performance levels among elite women have increased significantly, as has those of men.

In the 1972 Olympics with the great Mark Spitz, the 400 meter freestyle was won by Brad Cooper of Australia in 4:00:02. In the 2016 Olympics, Katie Ledecky won the same event in 3:56.46.