Global sports leaders reached consensus on a new set of eligibility criteria for transgender athletes in February.By ReutersPublished On 18 Mar 202618 Mar 2026More than 80 human rights and sport advocacy groups have called on the International Olympic Committee to abandon reported plans to introduce universal genetic sex testing for female athletes and impose a blanket ban on transgender and intersex competitors.A joint statement by the Sport & Rights Alliance (SRA), ILGA World, Humans of Sport and dozens of other groups warned that the measures that will reportedly be recommended by the IOC’s Protection of the Female Category Working Group would set back gender equity in sport.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list“Multiple sources have said the group has advised the IOC to require all women and girl athletes to undergo genetic sex verification and to bar transgender and intersex athletes from competing in women’s events. The IOC has not publicly confirmed the recommendations,” the statement said.The IOC said in a statement to Reuters on Wednesday that no decisions have been made.“The protection of the female category working group is continuing its discussions on this topic and no decisions have been taken yet,” the IOC spokesperson said. “Further information will be provided in due course.”The IOC discontinued universal sex testing after the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.It has long declined to apply any universal rule on transgender participation in the Olympics and in 2021 instructed international federations to come up with their own guidelines.Several major federations, including athletics, swimming and rugby union, have since barred athletes who have gone through male puberty from competing in the women’s class. Advertisement The SRA’s executive director Andrea Florence said sex testing and a blanket ban pol …
