SPORTS – World Athletics has announced plans to implement biological pre-clearance tests for track and field athletes competing in the female category, the sport’s governing body confirmed Tuesday, according to CNN.
The tests will analyze athletes’ genetic samples to determine the presence of the SRY gene, described by World Athletics as “a genetic surrogate for a Y chromosome.”
This decision follows a World Athletics Council meeting, where officials agreed to adopt multiple new eligibility conditions for female competition.
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe assured reporters that the tests would be “non-invasive.” Speaking at a Tuesday press conference, he specified that the process would involve a “cheek swab or dry blood test” and would be conducted only once in an athlete’s career.
“It’s along the lines of something that will be administered once in the career of an athlete, a female athlete,” Coe said.
While World Athletics has yet to select a provider for the testing, Coe reaffirmed the organization’s commitment to protecting female competition.
“We will doggedly protect the female category, and we’ll do whatever is necessary to do it, and we’re not just talking about it,” he said.
In a press release issued Tuesday, World Athletics emphasized the importance of maintaining fairness in women’s sports.
“Preserving the integrity of competition in the female category is a fundamental principle of the sport of athletics,” the statement read.
The organization also noted that the majority of stakeholders consulted last month supported limiting female competition to biological women.
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“This we feel is a really important way of providing confidence and maintaining that absolute focus on the integrity of competition,” Coe reiterated during the press conference.
Trump Signs Executive Order Banning Transgender Women from Women’s Sports
The debate over transgender athletes in women’s sports has gained national attention, with former President Donald Trump taking executive action on the issue in February.
Trump signed an executive order titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” at a White House ceremony, where he was joined by dozens of female athletes and young girls in sports uniforms. “With this executive order, the war on women’s sports is over,” Trump declared.
The order aims to enforce Title IX protections, which prohibit sex-based discrimination in federally funded education programs, and extends federal oversight into private sector compliance.