IOC moves closer to ban on transgender women

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The International Olympic Committee has moved a step closer to introducing a blanket ban on transgender women from female categories across all sports.

IOC president Kirsty Coventry vowed to bring in the move as part of her election campaign.

On Monday the Times reported, external that the ban was set to be announced as early as next year.

The IOC told the BBC that "the working group is continuing its discussions on this topic and no decisions have been taken yet".

Despite the IOC statement, the likely outcome is that a ban will be introduced.

Last week an update was presented by the organisation's medical and scientific director to members as it works through the details of the potential move.

Former swimmer Coventry - a seven-time Olympic medallist - told BBC Sport in June that the IOC must "play a leading role" in discussions in this area.

At the time she revealed a working group on the issue made up of experts and international federations would "ensure that we find consensus".

In February US President Donald Trump signed an executive order that prevents transgender women from competing in female categories.

He said the order would include the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles and that he will deny visas for transgender athletes trying to visit the US to compete at the Games.

In recent years a growing number of sports federations have barred athletes who have undergone male puberty from competing in elite female competition amid concerns over fairness and safety.

World Rugby became the first international sports federation to say transgender women cannot compete at the elite and international level of the women's game in 2020.

In 2022 Fina (now World Aquatics), swimming's world governing body, announced it would stop transgender athletes from competing in women's elite races if they had gone through any part of the process of male puberty.

In 2022 British Triathlon become the first British sporting body to establish a new 'open' category in which transgender athletes could compete.

In 2022 the Rugby Football League and Rugby Football Union banned transgender women from competing in female-only forms of their games.

In 2023 World Athletics banned transgender women from competing in the female category at international events.

New Zealand's Laurel Hubbard became the first openly transgender women to compete at an Olympics after being selected for the women's weightlifting team at Tokyo 2020.

Hubbard, who failed to record a successful lift in the women's +87kg category, had competed in men's events before coming out as transgender in 2013.

At Paris 2024 Algeria's Imane Khelif won the women's welterweight boxing gold medal, a year after being disqualified from the World Championships for reportedly failing a gender eligibility test.

The IOC cleared the 25-year-old to compete - along with Taiwan's Lin Yu-ting, who was also banned by the suspended International Boxing Association (IBA).

The IOC said competitors were eligible for the women's division if their passports said they were female.

Both fighters said they were women, had always competed in the women's division, and there was no suggestion they were transgender.

Some reports took the IBA saying Khelif has XY chromosomes to speculate that the fighter might have differences of sexual development (DSD), like runner Caster Semenya. However, the BBC was not able to confirm whether this is or is not the case.

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