International Olympic Committee issues new guidelines on transgender athletes
The new International Olympic Committee framework for transgender and intersex athletes drops policies that required athletes have "medically unnecessary" procedures.
The International Olympic Committee announced a new framework for transgender and intersex athletes Tuesday, dropping controversial policies that required competing athletes to undergo "medically unnecessary" procedures or treatment.
In a six-page document, the IOC outlined 10 principles, which it described as "grounded on the respect for internationally recognised human rights," that sports competitions should follow. It also said it will no longer require athletes to undergo hormone level modifications to compete.
"This Framework recognises both the need to ensure that everyone, irrespective of their gender identity or sex variations, can practise sport in a safe, harassment-free environment that recognises and respects their needs and identities," the committee said.
The new framework is not legally binding and was developed following an “extensive consultation” with athletes, other sports organizations and experts in the fields of human rights, law and medicine, the IOC said. It comes just three months after the Tokyo Olympics, which saw the first transgender and intersex athletes compete in the Games' history.
Tuesday's framework replaces guidelines the IOC released in 2015, which put a limit on athletes' testosterone levels that required some of them to undergo treatments the IOC now describes as "medically unnecessary." Before 2016, the IOC required athletes to undergo genital surgery.
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