The International Olympic Committee has introduced a new policy that does not ban any athlete from competing. The rule effectively bars trans-identifying athletes from the category aligned with their gender identity while permitting participation in the biological sex category.
This decision follows the IOC’s “broad-based review” of women’s sports eligibility, launched in September 2024 and concluded this month. In a statement, the committee determined that “a sex-based eligibility rule is necessary and adequate to the attainment of the IOC’s goals for competition at IOC Events.”
The policy also states: “Male sex confers performance advantage in all sports that rely on strength, power, and/or endurance,” and “to protect fairness in such sports and events, as well as safety particularly in contact sports (e.g., combat, collision, projectile sports), it is necessary and adequate to base eligibility for competition on biological sex.”
