Following updates to the regulations of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and the International Swimming Federation (FINA), the International Rugby League banned transgender people from international women’s competition this Tuesday (). The organization communicated that it needs to evaluate the participation of trans athletes so as not to generate risks to other athletes.
“Until more research is completed to allow the IRL to implement a formal transgender inclusion policy, trans players are not permitted to play in International Women’s Rugby League matches,” the statement explains. .
The IRL informed that it will work with the eight nations that will compete in the Women’s Rugby League World Cup to obtain data and create a transgender policy in 2023. The organization’s proposal is to “develop a set of criteria, based on the best possible evidence, that fairly balance the individual’s right to gamble with the safety of all participants”.419511613
As the statement highlights, the decision was influenced by “several relevant developments in world sport”, including a conclusion of the International Olympic Committee at the end of last year that it is up to each individual sport to weigh “how an athlete can be at a disproportionate advantage compared to their peers”.
