World Athletics: governing body bans transgender female athletes from top-level women’s competitions

Transgender women will now be excluded from competing in the female category at international events, after the governing body claimed it wanted "to prioritise fairness and the integrity of the female competition before inclusion".

The World Athletics Council made a number of important decisions on Thursday (23 March), regarding the future participation of the Russian and Belarusian Member Federations in athletics, and the eligibility regulations for athletes who are transgender or who have Differences of Sexual Development (DSD).

The Council agreed to exclude male-to-female transgender athletes who have been through male puberty from female World Rankings competition, from 31 March. The charity Stonewall described the ban as “so disappointing” and the World Athletics Council has “no specific evidence to justify the ban”.

In a statement, World Athletics said it held a consultation period with various stakeholders in the first two months of this year, including Member Federations, the Global Athletics Coaches Academy and Athletes’ Commission, the IOC as well as representative transgender and human rights groups.

"It became apparent that there was little support within the sport for the option that was first presented to stakeholders, which required transgender athletes to maintain their testosterone levels below 2.5 [nanomoles per litre] for 24 months to be eligible to compete internationally in the female category," it said.

For DSD athletes, the new regulations will require any relevant athletes to reduce their testosterone levels below a limit of 2.5 nanomoles per litre for a minimum of 24 months, to compete internationally in the female category in any event. The principle of restricted events has also been removed from the regulations.

The World Athletics statement said it has more than 10 years of research and evidence of the physical advantages that these athletes bring to the female category. "However, there are currently no transgender athletes competing internationally in athletics and consequently no athletics-specific evidence of the impact these athletes would have on the fairness of female competition in athletics.

"In these circumstances, the Council decided to prioritise fairness and the integrity of the female competition before inclusion," it said.

The Council agreed to set up a working group for 12 months to further consider the issue of transgender inclusion. This working group will include an independent chair, up to three Council Members, two athletes from the Athletes’ Commission, a transgender athlete, three representatives of the Member Federations and representatives of the World Athletics Health and Science Department.

Its remit will be to consult specifically with transgender athletes to seek their views on competing in athletics, to review and commission additional research where there is currently limited knowledge, and to put forward recommendations to the council.

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said: “Decisions are always difficult when they involve conflicting needs and rights between different groups, but we continue to take the view that we must maintain fairness for female athletes above all other considerations.

"We will be guided in this by the science around physical performance and male advantage which will inevitably develop over the coming years," he said "As more evidence becomes available, we will review our position, but we believe the integrity of the female category in athletics is paramount."

Stonewall said: “It is so disappointing to see World Athletics announce a unilateral ban on trans women in track and field events. Their own statement recognises that there are no trans women competing at an international level and that they have no specific evidence to justify the ban. We stand with trans people who now have the door closed on their chance to compete in athletic sports at an international level.”

Members also agreed to the reinstatement of the Russian Federation following seven years of suspension due to "egregious institutional doping violations".

But Russian athletes will remain barred from track and field “for the foreseeable future” because of the country’s invasion of Ukraine, Lord Coe said. The International Olympic Committee is exploring a pathway for Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete as neutrals at next year’s Olympic Games in Paris.