- By Gurmeet Batra
- Thu, 26 Mar 2026 08:41 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Thursday announced that only biological female athletes, identified through a one-time gene-screening test, will be eligible to compete in female category events at the Olympic Games, effective immediately.
The IOC has presented a cooperative policy for female elite sports, revealing new rules to govern the female category and address past controversies stemming from conflicting regulations.
The IOC has announced that Athletes contesting in female category events at the Olympics will now be instructed to undergo an SRY gene test to determine eligibility.
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"Based on scientific evidence, the IOC considers that the presence of the SRY gene is fixed throughout life and represents highly accurate evidence that an athlete has experienced male sex development," the IOC said in a statement.
"It is not retroactive and does not apply to any grassroots or recreational sports programs," said the IOC.
IOC President Kirsty Coventry reversed course shortly after taking office in June last year, confirming to take a cooperative approach to governing female sports.
"At the Olympic Games, even the smallest margins can be the difference between victory and defeat," Coventry said in the statement.
The IOC's research, as summarised in its document, suggests that individuals born male retain physical advantages.
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"Males experience three significant testosterone peaks: in utero, in mini-puberty of infancy and beginning in adolescent puberty through adulthood," the document said.
With Agency Inputs
