Olympics Prepares to Ban Trans Women from Competition
The move follows an IOC review finding that athletes who underwent male puberty retain physical advantages over women.
The International Olympic Committee is reportedly preparing to ban transgender women from competing in all female-designated sports, according to a report by the U.K. newspaper The Times.
At present, each sport’s international federation sets its own rules on transgender eligibility, with some requiring athletes to undergo hormone therapy for a specific period before competing in the female category.
But IOC President Kirsty Coventry, elected earlier this year, has called for consistent standards across all sports. After taking office in June, she created four working groups to address key issues facing the IOC, including one focused on protecting women’s sports.
The change, which will reportedly be officially announced next year, was made after the IOC carried out a science-based review of the physical advantages of people assigned male at birth.
The Times reported that Dr. Jane Thornton, the IOC’s director of health, medicine, and science, briefed colleagues on the review’s findings. A former world rowing champion, Thornton said scientific evidence indicates that anyone who has undergone male puberty retains permanent physical advantages over females that cannot be fully offset by hormone treatment.
The report also concluded that athletes with Disorders of Sexual Development (DSD) — a group of conditions in which a person develops traits of both sexes — have measurable advantages over cisgender female athletes.
Former Olympic track star Caster Semenya — who recently withdrew her challenge to an international competition ban after refusing to take medication to lower her testosterone levels, despite a European Court of Human Rights ruling that she was discriminated against– is among several athletes with DSD.
An IOC spokesperson confirmed to The Athletic that Thornton spoke to members last week but said the working group is still discussing the issue and no final decisions have been made.
However, two senior IOC sources, speaking anonymously, told the outlet the ban on transgender athletes and those with DSD is almost certain to be imposed. Both described the change in eligibility rules as long overdue.
The participation of transgender and DSD athletes became a flashpoint during the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris after two boxers — Imane Khelif of Algeria and Lin Yu-Ting of Taiwan — won gold medals despite having been disqualified from the 2023 World Championships for allegedly failing gender eligibility tests.
Both boxers were raised as and identify as women, and there is no evidence that either is transgender. However, they may have higher testosterone levels linked to DSD, a condition neither has been diagnosed with. Questions about their eligibility and perceived advantages over other competitors fueled renewed calls for a categorical ban on transgender athletes in women’s competitions.
It remains unclear whether the ban will take effect before the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo. The Times reported that the IOC could unveil the policy during its 145th Session in Milan, just days before the Games begin.
However, the ban is expected to be fully in place by the time Los Angeles hosts the 2028 Summer Olympics. Earlier this year, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order barring transgender women from women’s sports and threatening to withhold federal funding from schools, universities, and states that refuse to comply.
As part of that order, Trump directed the State Department to review the visas of foreign athletes entering the United States to ensure they were not assigned male at birth. The department has since said it will impose permanent visa bans on any transgender individuals — not just athletes — whose gender marker on their application does not match their assigned sex at birth.
To date, only one openly transgender woman has competed in the Olympics: New Zealand weightlifter Laurel Hubbard, who qualified for the 2021 Tokyo Games but failed to complete a successful lift.
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