Female World Ranking Events Face Major Shift as World Athletics Prohibits Transgender Athletes from Competing

The World Athletics Council announced on Thursday that it will no longer permit transgender athletes to compete against women in female World Rankings competitions.

Effective from next week, the decision will ban “male-to-female transgender athletes who have been through male puberty.”

World Athletics Council bans transgender women from competing in female events 👀 pic.twitter.com/godeDCfPdI

— Daily Loud (@DailyLoud) March 23, 2023

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe explained the reasoning behind the move, stating, “Decisions are always difficult when they involve conflicting needs and rights between different groups, but we continue to take the view that we must maintain fairness for female athletes above all other considerations.”

Coe added that the organization will be guided by scientific evidence regarding physical performance and male advantage, and will review its position as more evidence becomes available.

He emphasized that “the integrity of the female category in athletics is paramount.”

In making its decision, World Athletics consulted with Member Federations, the Global Athletics Coaches Academy and Athletes’ Commission, and the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

BREAKING: World Athletics excludes transgender women from elite female track & field competition following review from March 31st.
President Lord Coe: “the Council agreed it must be guided by our over-arching principle which is to protect the female category.” ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/qXfBWUPGCn

— Dan Roan (@danroan) March 23, 2023

The organization found “little support within the sport for the option that was first presented to stakeholders,” which would have required transgender athletes to maintain testosterone levels below 2.5nmol/L for 24 months to be eligible to compete internationally in the female category.

World Athletics serves as the international governing body for various athletic disciplines, including sprints, middle/long, hurdles, road running, jumps, throws, combined events, race walks, relays, cross country, mountain running, ultra running, and trail running.

The organization acknowledged that there are currently no transgender athletes competing internationally in athletics, and therefore, no athletics-specific evidence regarding the impact these athletes might have on the fairness of female competition in athletics.

Given these circumstances, the Council chose to prioritize fairness and the integrity of female competition over inclusion.

The decision marks a change in the landscape of international athletics and highlights the ongoing debate surrounding the inclusion of transgender athletes in competitive sports.

.@WorldAthletics announced it has banned male to female-identifying #trans athletes who have gone through male puberty from competing in the female world ranking events. Contrary to the evidence, many trans activists say male biology offers no https://t.co/fYfICugTSK…

— Andy Ngô 🏳️‍🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) March 23, 2023

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