During the last few years, the participation of transgender women in women’s sports events has been a matter of controversy. Recently, the issue once again grabbed the headlines, as the World Athletics, the International Athletics Federation, has just determined that transgender athletes will no longer be able to compete in international women’s events.
According to a new regulation that will come into force as of March 31, this will strictly apply to those who have experienced male puberty before their transition.
According to the BBC, The World Council of Athletics announced that transgender women who have passed puberty as men will not be able to compete in women’s categories at the international level. In other words, only transgender people who began their gender change before the age of 15 or 16, the age at which the body develops, will have access to participate.
This measure will enter into force on March 31 of the current year. Following the new provision, Sebastián Coe, president of World Athletics, stated that this issue is very complicated to deal with and there are no easy answers.
Decisions are always difficult when they involve conflicting needs and rights among different groups, but we continue to believe that we must uphold equity for female athletes above all other considerations.
Coe said that he will create a research group that will determine better guidelines for the selection of transgender athletes, in the meantime, they will have to abide by the rule that will go into effect later this month.
In addition, he clarified that the decision to change the rules was “guided by the general principle that is to protect the female category.”
We will be guided in this by the science around physical performance and the male advantage that will inevitably develop in the years to come. As more evidence becomes available, we will review our position, but we believe that the integrity of the women’s category in athletics is paramount.
Finally, Coe reported that the International Athletics Federation also determined to prevent athletes with a difference in sexual development from competing, that is, biological women with a condition for which they have high levels of testosterone.
So far, trans athletes have not spoken out against the new rules and it has not been mentioned if any special category of competition will be opened for them.
Source: Okchicas
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