The International Olympic Committee (IOC) officially announced that only biological women will be eligible to compete in the women’s category starting with the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, following the approval of a new eligibility policy.
The decision was announced after the Executive Committee meeting, where the organization’s president, Kirsty Coventry, confirmed that the measure will not be retroactive and will apply to all events under Olympic jurisdiction.
This regulation establishes that eligibility in women’s events will be determined by a single genetic test based on the detection of the SRY gene, a marker associated with male biological development. Consequently, only those who test negative will be able to compete in this category.
The organization specified that this policy will be universally applicable, encompassing both individual and team sports, in an attempt to unify criteria after years in which each international federation set its own rules.
This change marks a shift from the guidelines issued in 2021, when the IOC delegated the regulation of transgender athletes’ participation to sports federations. However, the emergence of new scientific studies and high-profile cases reignited the debate on competitive equity in women’s sports.
Among the precedents that fueled the discussion were the participation of New Zealand weightlifter Laurel Hubbard in the Tokyo Olympic Games, as well as the controversies surrounding Algerian boxer Imane Khelif.
The policy includes limited exceptions for athletes with rare conditions, such as Complete Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome or other differences in sex development, provided there is no advantage derived from testosterone.
With this decision, the IOC seeks to establish a uniform framework that, according to its leaders, guarantees the protection of women’s sports, amidst a global debate that continues to divide opinions both within and beyond the sporting sphere.
Source: Agencia Prensa Latina