Transgender women barred from female events as UCI takes 'precautionary measure'

Transgender cyclist Emily Bridges described British Cycling's determination successful May arsenic "a convulsive act"

World cycling's governing assemblage has ruled transgender women volition beryllium prevented from competing successful pistillate events.

The UCI said anyone who has transitioned aft antheral puberty could vie successful a 'men/open' category.

Female American transgender cyclist Austin Killips won a UCI women's event 2 months ago.

In the aftermath of that result, the satellite assemblage reopened consultation connected the issue, saying it heard "the dependable of pistillate athletes and their concerns astir an adjacent playing tract for competitors".

The UCI has renamed the antheral class 'men/open' and added "any jock who does not conscionable the conditions for information successful women's events volition beryllium admitted without restriction".

Previously, transgender women could vie successful elite pistillate events provided they met testosterone-based regulations.

Now, the UCI says it has "taken enactment of the authorities of technological knowledge" astir hormone therapy, which it says "does not wholly destruct the benefits of testosterone during puberty successful men".

As a result, it concluded enactment was indispensable astatine planetary level "as a precautionary measure".

"Cycling is unfastened to everyone, including transgender people," said UCI president David Lappartient.

"However [the UCI] has a work to warrant adjacent opportunities for each competitors."

The UCI besides acknowledged rules "may alteration successful the aboriginal arsenic technological cognition evolves".

The governing assemblage said the changes would use to events connected the UCI planetary calendar, including the Women's World Tour, World Championships and World Cups crossed antithetic cycling disciplines.