Tag: olympics

No man will grab an Olympic medal from a woman under a new policy unveiled Thursday by the International Olympic Committee.

Under the new policy, genetic testing will be required to ensure only women compete in women’s categories, according to The New York Times.

The decision will take effect with the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

“As a former athlete, I passionately believe in the rights of all Olympians to take part in fair competition,” IOC president Kristy Coventry, a former gold medal Olympian, said in a statement posted on the IOC website.

“The policy that we have announced is based on science and has been led by medical experts. At the Olympic Games, even the smallest margins can be the difference between victory and defeat,” she said.

“So, it is absolutely clear that it would not be fair for biological males to compete in the female category. In addition, in some sports it would simply not be safe,” she said.

“Every athlete must be treated with dignity and respect, and athletes will need to be screened only once in their lifetime. There must be clear education around the process and counselling available, alongside expert medical advice,” she said.

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Finally, common sense has prevailed at the International Olympic Committee (IOC). If rumours are to be believed, a blanket ban on transgender-identifying men competing in women’s Olympic events is set to be introduced. At last!

This is great news for female athletes who will no longer have to endure the indignity and inherent unfairness of being made to compete against males. And it will no doubt be a huge relief for women who engage in contact sports, such as boxing, and who were put in danger by being made to face bulkier, stronger rivals. But why has it taken the IOC so long to see sense?

Feminists have long known that defending women’s rights is a marathon, not a sprint. But when it comes to single-sex sports, this marathon has been undertaken at snail’s pace. Rather than simply saying ‘no’ to cheating men, the IOC has been around the houses. Since the last Olympics, it has elected a new president, established a ‘working group’, launched a review and commissioned a presentation. Even after all of this, we are told that ‘no decisions have been taken yet’.

The cause for celebration this week is solely down to sources having revealed ‘that a ban is likely to be introduced in 2026’, but probably not before February’s Winter Olympics in Italy. In fact, the ban may not take full effect until the Los Angeles Games in 2028.

Sadly, this will be far too late for New Zealand’s women weight lifters. They missed out on the life-changing opportunity to compete in the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, when their spot was taken by transgender athlete, Laurel Hubbard. Hubbard competed in men’s events before declaring himself to be transgender in 2013. He took medication to reduce his testosterone levels and – hey presto! – gained a place in the female category. Hubbard did not win a medal at the games, but, unlike the women who did take the top spots, he garnered global media plaudits.

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A ban on transgender women competitors is strongly expected to be in place for the  2028 Olympics – but it remains unclear if there will be barriers against athletes with differences of sexual development (DSD) after the boxing furore at Paris 2024.

Under the existing rules, each sport is empowered to decide if transgender women can compete if their testosterone levels fall below a designated threshold.

But the International Olympic Committee, under new president Kirsty Coventry, is in discussions about a dramatic policy shift that would impose a blanket ban across all sports for the Los Angeles Games. 

Such a move would prevent the kind of scenario that saw Laurel Hubbard contest the weightlifting at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Hubbard transitioned in 2012. 

While Olympic sources have confirmed that such a measure is very much the ‘direction of travel’, it is highly unlikely to come into force before the Winter Olympics in Italy next February. 

One report suggested that a rule change could be announced in February, but insiders estimated it might take between six months and a year for it to be approved and cleared.

The move would be seen as a box ticked by Coventry, who campaigned to protect the female category on her way to winning the presidential election earlier this year.

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The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee has banned transgender biological males from competing in women’s events to comply with the executive order issued by President Donald Trump.

The committee announced the change on Monday after informing the national sport governing bodies that it has an “obligation to comply” with Trump’s February “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” Executive Order 14201, which requires federal agencies and organizations receiving federal funding to enforce sex-based distinctions in sports.

The new “Athlete Safety Policy” references the order directly, without naming it.

“The USOPC will continue to collaborate with various stakeholders with oversight responsibilities, e.g., IOC, IPC, NGBs, to ensure that women have a fair and safe competition environment consistent with Executive Order 14201 and the Ted Stevens Olympic & Amateur Sports Act,” the document says.

Under the new rules, athletes must compete in the category corresponding to their biological sex at birth.

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Algerian gold medalist Imane Khelif was told that she needs to return the gold medal she won in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

After Angela Carini was defeated in 46 seconds, the Italian questioned Khelif’s gender and whether the boxer deserved to compete with women. Khelif then clashed with Donald Trump as a result.

Then in June 2025, Khelif was banned from the female category, which was then followed by IBA president Umar Kremlev unearthing fresh allegations against the boxing star. Now, Kremlev has demanded that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) strip Khelif of her gold medal and to give the gold to the rightful winner. It came as another boxing star found himself in jail just days after his huge fight last weekend.

“No, I am not satisfied,” Kremlev told GB News. “I truly believe that a medal should be truly deserved. We must protect athletes and give them the best conditions.”

He added that the medal should go to the “real female owner,” adding: “I am here for truth, transparency and openness. And now the truth has been revealed. … There should be no unfair fights in boxing and the international federations should take care of their athletes.”

Kremlev also claimed the IOC is “surrounded” by corruption and had violated many “good sporting principles.” “The IOC is not fighting for the fairness in sport. The IOC is giving away medals based on their political interests. Imane Khelif should be made to return the Olympic medal from Paris,” he told the Daily Mail.

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