The International Olympic Committee has approved a new eligibility policy that will exclude transgender women from competing in female events at the Olympic Games from Los Angeles 2028, marking one of the most significant shifts in Olympic participation rules in recent years. The IOC said on Thursday that entry into the female category at the Games and other IOC events will now be restricted to “biological females,” with eligibility determined through a one-time screening for the SRY gene, which is associated with male sex development.
The new policy will also affect some athletes with differences of sex development, or DSD, including cases similar to that of two-time Olympic champion Caster Semenya. The IOC said the rule is intended to protect “fairness, safety and integrity” in women’s sport and will apply from the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. It said the measure is not retroactive and will not extend to grassroots or recreational sport.
IOC President Kirsty Coventry acknowledged the sensitivity of the issue but said the organization wanted a single, clearer framework instead of continuing to leave the matter largely to individual sports federations. In announcing the decision, the IOC argued that athletes who have undergone male puberty may retain performance advantages that affect elite female competition, even after hormone treatment.
The policy has already drawn strong reactions internationally. Supporters say it creates a uniform standard for Olympic competition and protects women’s categories at the highest level of sport. Critics, however, argue that the return to genetic screening raises ethical, legal and scientific concerns, especially for intersex athletes and countries with strict bioethics protections. France’s sports minister described the move as a “step backwards,” while other Olympic bodies said they would apply the policy with care and respect for affected athletes.
The IOC itself did not present the rule as an effort to implement a U.S. government order. However, AP reported that the change aligns with U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive order on women’s sports, issued as the United States prepares to host the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles. Trump is the current U.S. president, and Reuters has separately reported on his administration’s broader push for sex-based rules in sport and public policy.
It remains unclear how many transgender women compete, or are likely to compete, at Olympic level. No openly transgender woman competed at the Paris 2024 Summer Games, though New Zealand weightlifter Laurel Hubbard became the first openly transgender Olympian in a women’s event at Tokyo 2021.
