Elite swimming is the first sport to prohibit transgender athletes from competing in women’s races, even if they have completed male puberty.
FINA, the world swimming association, is creating a “open category” in which transgender competitors will compete in their own class.
Transgender swimmers, such as Lia Thomas, who presently competes in the women’s division in swim meets, have shattered women’s records and sparked controversy, with many claiming that she has an unfair physical edge over her fellow competitors.
The decision was decided on the fringes of the world championships in Budapest during FINA’s special general congress after members heard a report from a transgender task group comprised of top medical, legal, and sports authorities.
Sharron Davies MBE, a former Olympic swimmer who has pushed for equality and fairness in sport and has spoken out against transgender swimmers in women’s events, tweeted about FINA’s announcement.
‘I can’t tell you how happy I am of my sport @fina & @fina president for doing the science, asking athletes/coaches, and standing up for equitable sport for females,’ she wrote.
‘Swimming will always welcome everyone, regardless of how they identify, but fairness is the foundation of sport.’
Her tweet came in reaction to a Friday post in which she stated, ‘Once a male has gone through puberty, there will always be a huge retained performance advantage & bone structure.’
‘Why are we expecting female athletes to compete with a known disadvantage before we even begin?’ Females are not men with lower testosterone levels. ‘Contest with your sex.’
Davies lost gold to East German swimmer Petra Schneider in the 1980 Moscow Olympics, and she was later caught doping with performance-enhancing substances, including testosterone.
FINA President Husain Al-Musallam confirmed the news on Sunday afternoon.
‘I don’t want any athlete to be told they can’t compete at the highest level,’ Al-Musallam said today at his organization’s congress.
‘I will form a working group to create an open category at our meetings.’
‘We will be the first federation to accomplish it,’ says the president.
Transgender competitors must have completed their transition by the age of 12 in order to compete in women’s contests under the new rules.
After being placed to the members of 152 national federations with voting rights who had convened for the congress in the Puskas Arena, the policy was passed with a nearly 71% majority.
Transgender rights have been a prominent topic of discussion as sports strive to strike a balance between diversity and preventing unfair advantage.
The controversy heated up after University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas won the women’s 500-yard freestyle earlier this year, becoming the first transgender NCAA champion in Division I history.
Thomas swam for three seasons for the Pennsylvanian men’s team before beginning hormone replacement treatment in the spring of 2019.
A number of doctors have claimed that Lia Thomas and other trans female athletes will always have an unfair advantage in certain sports because they cannot erase adolescence, when their biological male bodies were inundated with testosterone.
Last month, Thomas stated that some ‘cisgender’ women have more testosterone, larger hands and feet, and are taller than their opponents – so why should she be prohibited when others are not?
‘I don’t need anyone’s approval to be me,’ she remarked.
She also stated that anyone who tells her she can’t compete as a woman is transphobic, regardless of whether they support her right to transition.
‘You can’t go halfway and say, “I support trans people, but only up to a point.”
‘I don’t know whether you can say that if you support transwomen and they’ve met all of the NCAA requirements.’
‘Trans women are not a threat to women’s sports,’ says one expert.
Many others agreed with Sharron Davies’ reaction to the news in her tweet. ‘Finally, someone in sports has some basic sense,’ one wrote. Other sports must now follow this lead.’
‘It should be in all amateur sports, not just elite sports,’ remarked another, while another added, ‘Now for the other sporting governing bodies.’
‘Thank you FINA for listening to women, your own swimmers and coaches, and science in adopting a policy that honors women’s sport,’ sports scientist Ross Tucker tweeted.