World Athletics Bans Transgender Athletes From Competing In Female World Ranking Events

The World Athletics Council announced on Thursday that it will not allow transgender athletes to compete against women in female World Rankings competitions.

The move, which goes into effect next week, will ban “male-to-female transgender athletes who have been through male puberty.”

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