The IOC this week reversed its 2015 guidance that transgender women should be allowed to compete in women’s sport provided their testosterone levels are below a certain limit for at least 12 months before their first competition.
It said there was “no definitive answer” on whether testosterone conferred a competitive advantage for trans and some intersex women and that its impact on success differed from one sport to another.
The decision – part of a new framework to be introduced after the Beijing Winter Games – was broadly welcomed by LGBTQ+ and human rights advocates as a move towards greater inclusivity.
But some scientists said leaving hard decisions about whether trans and intersex women had an unfair advantage to sports federations