Here’s the extracted and translated content:
World Athletics will introduce a gene test for athletes who want to participate in women’s events. The new rule will take effect on September 1st and will therefore also apply to the World Championships in Tokyo, which start on September 13th.
World Athletics already announced in March that this gene test was forthcoming, but has now announced an implementation date. The federation previously tightened the rules for transgender persons. They are not allowed to participate in women’s competitions if they have gone through puberty as a man. World Athletics does not report on a test for the men’s category.
It concerns an SRY gene test, which stands for Sex-determining Region Y. “All athletes who want to participate in the women’s category at the World Championships must undergo a one-time test for the SRY gene. This is a reliable indicator for determining biological sex,” reports World Athletics.
The test must be performed via a cheek swab or blood test. The new rule follows the recommendations of the Gender Diverse Athletes working group. That working group has studied developments in law, science, sport and society related to gender diverse athletes for more than a year.
According to chairman Sebastian Coe, World Athletics has introduced the test for “the protection and promotion of the integrity of women’s sport”. “It is very important that women practice a sport with the belief that there is no biological glass ceiling.”
“We say, at the top level, that you must be biologically female to be allowed to participate in the women’s category,” says Coe. “It was always very clear to me and the board of World Athletics that gender cannot trump biology.”
