NEW DELHI: The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has decided that transgender women will no longer be allowed to compete in women’s events at the Olympics, starting from the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
The move brings in a stricter eligibility rule, stating that only biological females can take part, with a one-time mandatory gene test to confirm this.
The IOC said the change is meant to ensure fair competition.
“Eligibility for any female category event at the Olympic Games or any other IOC event… is now limited to biological females,” the body stated. The policy, which is not retroactive and won’t affect grassroots sports, aims to “protect fairness, safety and integrity in the female category”.
IOC president Kirsty Coventry backed the decision, saying, “At the Olympic Games, even the smallest margins can be the difference between victory and defeat… it would not be fair for biological males to compete in the female category.”
The IOC also pointed to research suggesting that being born male can give lasting physical advantages, especially in strength, endurance and power-based sports.
A gene test checking for the SRY gene has been described as “the most accurate and least intrusive method currently available”.
The new rules will also affect some athletes with differences in sex development (DSD), such as runner Caster Semenya.
The IOC wants a clear, unified policy instead of leaving decisions to individual sports bodies, many of which had already imposed similar restrictions.
The decision comes amid growing global debate and follows a US executive order pushing for stricter rules in women’s sports.
While the IOC says the policy ensures fairness, it is expected to face criticism from human rights groups and activists.
