British Cycling to ban transgender women from competing in elite female category

1 year ago 35

British Cycling's Jon Dutton 'confident' caller policies safeguard fairness

British Cycling is to prohibition transgender women from the pistillate class of its elite competitions pursuing a nine-month reappraisal and consultation.

Under a caller information argumentation that the governing assemblage said was "predicated connected fairness", specified athletes volition vie successful an 'open category' with men.

The pistillate class volition beryllium "for those whose enactment was assigned pistillate astatine birth".

The changes volition forestall rider Emily Bridges - the country's highest-profile transgender cyclist - perchance being portion of the British women's team.

Last twelvemonth she was stopped from competing successful her archetypal elite women's contention by the UCI - cycling's satellite federation - contempt gathering the rules astatine the time.

British Cycling's argumentation had allowed transgender women to instrumentality portion successful elite pistillate events if they met testosterone-based regulations.

But with the governing assemblage astatine the bosom of the statement implicit balancing inclusion with fairness, its regulations were suspended amid mounting contention astir Bridges and a reappraisal was launched.

"Research studies bespeak that adjacent with the suppression of testosterone, transgender women who modulation post-puberty clasp a show advantage," said British Cycling.

"Our purpose successful creating our policies has ever been to beforehand and beforehand equality, diverseness and inclusion, portion astatine the aforesaid clip prioritising fairness of competition.

"We recognise the interaction the suspension of our argumentation has had connected trans and non-binary people, and we are atrocious for the uncertainty and upset that galore person felt during this period."

Transgender women volition beryllium capable to enactment successful non-competitive recreational and assemblage cycling without restriction.

The caller policies volition beryllium implemented by the extremity of the year.

What's the background?

Having been a highly promising rival successful inferior men's events, Bridges came retired arsenic transgender successful 2020, starting hormone therapy arsenic portion of her sex dysphoria treatment.

She past became eligible to vie successful elite women's events nether British Cycling's transgender regulations, which required riders to person had testosterone levels beneath 5 nanomoles per litre for a 12-month play anterior to competition.

But days earlier the 2022 National Omnium Championships, the UCI said Bridges' information could lone beryllium allowed erstwhile her eligibility to contention successful planetary competitions was confirmed, dashing her hopes of competing for Wales successful the Commonwealth Games.

A radical of elite pistillate cyclists called connected the UCI to "rescind" its rules astir transgender participation, claiming pistillate athletes successful the UK were "willing to boycott" events implicit their "concerns astir fairness successful their sport".

Bridges said she felt "harassed and demonised" and had "little clarity" connected her eligibility. She added that she "does not person immoderate advantage" implicit her competitors, and could beryllium it with data.

While British Cycling suspended its rules, the UCI past toughened its regulations, doubling the qualification play to 2 years and lowering the required testosterone threshold for transgender women riders to 2.5nmol/L.

But this month, aft Austin Killips became the archetypal transgender pistillate to triumph a UCI women's signifier race astatine the Tour of the Gila, the satellite governing assemblage re-opened consultation connected the issue, saying it "hears the voices of pistillate athletes and their concerns astir an adjacent playing tract for competitors".

'Paucity of research' - British Cycling boss

"We admit the paucity of probe astatine this time, but tin lone look astatine what's disposable to use," said British Cycling main enforcement Jon Dutton.

"I americium assured that we person developed policies that some safeguard the fairness of cycle-sport competition, whilst ensuring each riders person opportunities to participate.

"We person ever been precise wide that this is simply a situation acold greater than 1 sport. We stay committed to listening to our communities, to show changes successful the technological and argumentation landscape, to guarantee that athletics is inclusive for all."

In March, UK Athletics besides banned transgender women from competing successful the pistillate class successful its competitions and events. There person been akin moves successful swimming,triathlon and both codes of rugby.

A fig of studies person suggested transgender women clasp cardiovascular and spot advantages compared to pistillate athletes, adjacent aft taking testosterone-suppressing hormones.

Critics of transgender athletes' information successful immoderate women's sports reason that gives them a disproportionate vantage implicit their peers and limits opportunities for their rivals.

However, others reason determination is not capable elaborate probe successful the area, that the subject is not clear, and that with precise fewer elite transgender athletes, athletics should beryllium much inclusive, with unfastened categories criticised for being discriminatory.

British Cycling said its women-only assemblage programme "will proceed to stay unfastened and inclusive for transgender women and non-binary people" who tin "continue to enactment successful a wide scope of British Cycling activities successful enactment with their sex identities".

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