The tests will result in banning transgender female athletes and a large number of intersex athletes from the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Sebastian Coe, President of the International Association of Athletics Federations, expressed his delight at the IOC’s decision in March to reinstate genetic femininity tests during an interview with AFP. These tests, introduced by World Athletics six months ago, will lead to the exclusion of transgender female athletes and a significant portion of intersex athletes from the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
President Coe also praised the efforts of the new President, Kirsty Coventry, in protecting the female category. This decision marks a reversal of the rules set in 2021 by the IOC, where each international sports federation was allowed to set their own policies.
Since 2018, World Athletics regulations required athletes with differences in sexual development (DSD) to lower their testosterone levels through hormonal treatment to participate in international competitions in the female category. This alignment with Sebastian Coe’s position seems like a victory for the President of the International Association of Athletics Federations.
Reserving the female category for competitors without the SRY gene excludes both transgender athletes and a significant number of intersex athletes, who have genetic variations while being considered female since birth.
Sebastian Coe expressed his satisfaction with the changing views towards this issue, calling it a significant development for the Olympic movement. The IOC previously conducted femininity chromosome tests between 1968 and the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, but discontinued them in 1999 due to scientific and athlete commission pressure questioning their relevance.
