Khaberni - The International Olympic Committee announced that participation in women's competitions at the Olympic Games will be limited to athletes who were born biologically female.
The International Olympic Committee clarified that the gender of the athletes will be determined through a genetic test that will be conducted only once during the athletes' careers.
The committee revealed its new policy, which it said aims to protect women in competitions, as part of a broader initiative to establish a global uniform standard for competitors in elite women's sports.
The International Olympic Committee stated that all athletes wishing to qualify or participate in women's competitions at the Olympic Games will from now on undergo a genetic test to detect the presence of the "SRY" gene in order to determine their eligibility.
The committee's statement read, "Based on scientific evidence, the International Olympic Committee believes that the lifelong presence of the 'SRY' gene is a very accurate indicator that the athlete has undergone male sexual development."
For many years, the International Olympic Committee refrained from adopting a unified rule on the participation of transgender athletes and in 2021 delegated the task of setting their own guidelines to international federations.
However, Kirsty Coventry, the new president of the committee, completely changed this approach after taking office in June of last year, and stated that the committee will lead the efforts to establish a unified policy.
In the statement, Coventry said, "In the Olympic Games, even small differences can determine the winner... and it is clear that it would not be fair for biologically male athletes to compete in the women's category... Moreover, this might pose a risk in some sports."
The committee added that the new rules do not apply retroactively and do not cover popular or amateur sports.
Until Thursday, transgender athletes were allowed to compete in the Olympic Games once they received approval from the relevant federations.
Only a few transgender athletes have participated in the Olympic Games, with the New Zealander Laurel Hubbard being the first openly transgender athlete to compete in a category different from the sex assigned at birth when she competed in weightlifting at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics.
Last year in the United States, a decision was issued prohibiting transgender athletes from participating in school and university competitions, and professional competitions in the women's category, at a time when Los Angeles is preparing to host the 2028 Summer Olympic Games.
