New IOC rules ban transgender women from competing in female category
The moon is seen behind the flag with the Olympic rings. Peter Kneffel/dpa Transgender women are banned from competing in the female category at future Games, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said on Thursday as it introduced new female eligibility rules. The IOC said that the rule approved by its executive board will apply from the next Olympics 2028 in Los Angeles onwards and will not be used retroactively.
"Eligibility for any female category event at the Olympic Games or any other IOC event, including individual and team sports, is now limited to biological females, determined on the basis of a one time SRY gene screening," the IOC said. All athletes to compete in the female category must undergo the SYR test which the IOC said will "protect fairness, safety and integrity in the female category. " The IOC said the rule does not apply for recreational or grassroots sports.
It is in line with an executive order of United States President Donald Trump on transgender women in female sports events. The SRY test, either a swab or blood test, was first used on a big scale by World Athletics which made it mandatory for women at last year's world championships in Tokyo. Athletics and swimming are among sports which have banned transgender women from competing in the female category.
The IOC said its new rules is the result of a review process which started in September 2024 and gained momentum when Kirsty Coventry became the first woman to be elected president last year. The gender eligibility debate gained a lot of attention at the Paris Olympics in 2024. Boxers Imane Khelif of Algeria and Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan won gold medals at the Games, a year after they were disqualified from the world championships, which is run by the International Boxing Federation (IBA), after allegedly failing eligibility tests.
The IOC, which has run the last two Olympic boxing tournaments because it has suspended IBA for various reasons, said Khelif and Lin could compete because they were born and identify as women. The IOC said its research showed that born males retain advantages in the areas of strength, power, and/or endurance and have three significant testosterone peaks: "In utero, in mini-puberty of infancy and beginning in adolescent puberty through adulthood. " It said that the male advantage ranged from 10-12% in running or swimming to more than 100% in sports involving lifting and punching.