IAAF President Sebastian Coe has hinted that his body could follow the example of swimming, with a tougher policy on transgender athletes competing in women’s competitions.
The International Swimming Federation (FINA) announced on Sunday that it intends to create an “open category” to allow transgender athletes to compete in a separate category.
Under the new rules, transgender swimmers will only be allowed to compete in women’s competitions if they can “prove they have not experienced any signs of puberty in men.”
The decision comes after criticism of American swimmer Leah Thomas, who became the first transgender athlete to win a varsity title in March last year after competing as a male at the University of Pennsylvania between 2017 and 2019.
“My responsibility is to protect the integrity of women’s sport and we take that very seriously and if that means we have to make changes to the protocols in the future, we will,” Briton Coe said from Budapest on the side of the world. swimming championships.
Seb Coe: “Biology is more important than gender.”
The president of World Athletics supports Fina’s stance on transgender inclusion and says its governing body will discuss their measures as well as DSD rules at a council meeting. https://t.co/vUO1CPzRdi
— AB (@AthleticsWeekly) June 20, 2022
And the 1980 and 1984 Olympic champion in the 1500m continued: “I have always made it clear that if we are driven into a corner and forced to choose between justice or inclusion, I will always stay on the side of justice.”
And the former runner added: “We see an international federation asserting its primacy in setting rules, regulations and policies for the benefit of its sport. That’s the way it should be. We have always believed and reiterated that biology is more important than sex, and we will continue to revise our rules accordingly.”
According to IAAF rules, transgender women must demonstrate that they have had low testosterone levels for at least 12 months prior to competition.
“We continue to study, research and contribute to the growing body of evidence that testosterone is a key determinant of performance,” Koh, 65, said, adding that the agency has set a date to discuss various sexual development and transgender laws over the course of of the year. end of the meeting.
Source: AFP