Same-sex pairs will be permitted to compete in British ice dance events, British Ice Skating — the national governing body of figure skating, synchronized skating, and speed skating — announced last week.
However, same-sex pairs will only be allowed to compete at the national level, as International Skating Union rules require pair and dance teams to be made up of one man and one woman, reports The Guardian.
The rule change was announced as part of British Ice Skating’s updated championship requirements for the 2026-2027 season. The move follows similar changes adopted by Canada and Finland, with Canada becoming the first country to allow skaters of any gender to form a competitive pair or ice dance team in 2022.
Finland adopted the change earlier this season, with Emma Aalto and Millie Colling becoming the country’s first same-sex ice dance team.
Several former skaters have advocated for the change. Canadian ice dancer Kaitlyn Weaver, who won two bronze medals and one silver at World Championships between 2013 and 2018 and now serves on the ISU’s ice dance technical committee, has urged the international skating body to revise its rules to allow same-sex pairs.
Weaver told The Canadian Press in 2023 that the visibility of a same-sex couple could have a positive impact on both athletes and fans.
“[A]s an ice dancer, and especially as a queer person growing up that didn’t know she was queer, seeing different stories represented and different partnering, different types of identities on the ice, would have been very liberating for me,” she said.
Similarly, Scott Moir, a retired Canadian skater who won three Olympic gold medals and two silver medals at the 2010, 2014, and 2018 Olympics, has argued that allowing same-sex pairs would create more opportunities for female skaters facing a shortage of male partners.
Retired Olympic ice dance champions Madison Hubbell of the United States and Gabriella Papadakis of France have skated together in exhibitions in an effort to challenge stereotypes about the sport and pave the way for same-sex pairs to compete internationally. Like Moir, Hubbell has noted that many female skaters see their competitive opportunities limited by the lack of an opposite-sex partner.
“I see a lot of young women who want to pursue ice dance in a certain way and there’s not that many young boys or men who are competing, so there’s a limit to how many people right now are participating,” she told Reuters earlier this year as she and Papadakis practiced for one of their exhibitions.
The United States Tennis Association, the national governing body for tennis in the United States, has quietly banned transgender athletes from competing in women's events.
As first reported by independent journalist Marisa Kabas in her newsletter The Handbasket, the USTA revised its "Player Eligibility Policy" page on October 25 with no prior warning or public announcement.
Under the revised policy -- which applies to all sex-specific junior and adult leagues, tournaments, and competitions, whether Olympic, professional, or recreational -- only athletes who meet the USTA's definition of a woman or girl may compete in events designated for women or girls.
Justine Lindsay, the NFL's first out transgender cheerleader, recently revealed that she was fired this year, a decision she alleges was motivated by transphobia and Donald Trump's election as president.
"I was cut because I'm trans," Lindsay said in an Instagram Live with Gaye Magazine. "I don't wanna hear nobody saying, 'She didn't wanna come back.' Why the hell would I not wanna come back to an organization that I've been a part of for three years? That makes no sense to me. So I was cut. I was devastated. It stung. I was hurt."
Lindsay, who made history as the NFL's first transgender cheerleader when she tried out and made the Carolina Panthers's TopCats squad in 2022, told the magazine that her teammates "know the truth" about the decision to cut her from the squad.
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
You must be logged in to post a comment.