World Athletics announced a consultation period for an updated set of regulations for DSD athletes. This announcement came as a direct result of US President Donald Trump banning transgender women from competing in women’s sports. The President also said he will make sure this is imposed on a global level before the Olympics in 2028.
On Monday, the World Athletics took to their Twitter account and wrote, “World Athletics today launched a new consultation process on its eligibility conditions for the female category and the current DSD regulations and transgender regulations. The eligibility guidelines are being updated to reflect the latest developments in science, sport, and law.”
World Athletics today launched a new consultation process on its eligibility conditions for the Female Category and the current DSD regulations and Transgender Regulations.
The eligibility guidelines are being updated to reflect the latest developments in science, sport and law.
— World Athletics (@WorldAthletics) February 10, 2025
In March 2023, they introduced the rule that anyone who has undergone male puberty will not be allowed to compete in the female category after a report that mentioned the difference in strength, lung capacity and power between men and women even after getting the hormonal treatment.
However, they now want to make this policy even more strict because of “new evidence which clarifies there is already an athletically significant performance gap before the onset of puberty”.
The President of the World Athletics, Sebastian Coe said, “Preserving the integrity of competition in the female category is a fundamental principle of the sport of athletics and we look forward to this collaborative consultation process with our key stakeholders in this area.”
According to the new evidence, “clarified that testosterone suppression in 46XY DSD, external and 46XY transgender individuals can only ever partly mitigate the overall male advantage”.
The organisation is considering a cheek-swab test, which is used to determine biological sex by looking for the SRY gene, which is typically found on the male Y chromosome. It is a one-time non-invasive process which is almost as accurate as a biological test.
Read More
However, Professor Alun Williams, a researcher in the field of genetics for sports told BBC Sports last year that a cheek swab alone will “not allow you to reach a robust conclusion on someone’s sex and potential advantage in sport”.
Not everyone is happy with this decision as a fan shares on their Twitter account, “Why on earth do you need to do a consultation on what a woman is? We ALL know already, only cheaters pretend otherwise.”
However, people have also come up in support of the development as they shared, “This is excellent news, well done, clearing up the DSD regulations, and with an emphasis on arguing for and explaining them.”
“It’s not that difficult, guys… You are either a man or a woman!! If you have any XY chromosomes, then you don’t compete in women’s sports!! Stop disrespecting biological women!”.
The organisation will undergo a consultation period from 10 February to 5 March 2025.
