This is a very important decision by the IOC, following years of controversy over the inclusion of transgender and DSD athletes in women’s competitions and intense debate over how sport should balance inclusion, fairness and safety.
Reflecting how sensitive a policy area this has become, the IOC has traditionally left it up to international sport to determine eligibility criteria for women’s competitions. However, if the policy changes significantly, all federations are now expected to follow suit.
A blanket ban on transgender athletes and DSD athletes from women’s sports would be welcomed by many who have long felt such a move was essential to maintain fairness and safety in women’s sports.
Supporters say this approach, based on genetic testing, has recently been successfully applied in track and field and boxing and is a reliable, confidential and balanced approach that has the support of sports scientists along with the majority of athletes.
They also say this method is more humane than requiring transgender or DSD athletes to suppress their natural testosterone levels and will avoid the intense media scrutiny some athletes receive.
But opponents remain concerned that this approach is invasive and risks accidental contamination and potential false positives.
In a report submitted to the British Journal of Sports Medicine this month, a group of academics called gender testing “a throwback and a harmful anachronism”, saying the tests could violate athletes’ human rights and cause stigma and psychological distress.
They said this was “a simplistic way to reduce traits to a single gene, which does not reflect the complex nature of sex.”
The IOC used SRY genetic tests in the 1980s, but abolished gender confirmation tests in the 1990s after a number of ‘false positives’ and concerns that female athletes would be penalized for natural mutations.
Now, under mounting pressure, the sport’s most powerful body has embarked on a new approach, and it will be interesting to see whether it now faces legal challenges.
