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You are here: Home / Sport / Sport timeline: how did we get here?

Sport timeline: how did we get here?

12th July 2022 by FPFW

    • 2003
      International Olympic Committee approves policy for post-operative transsexuals to compete in women’s events, expects it to be extremely rare.

    • 2013
      UK Sports Council Equality Group (SCEG) publishes guidance for transgender inclusion in female events based on testosterone suppression. Widely adopted by UK sports bodies despite no processes for monitoring compliance. Hence in practice largely a self-ID policy.

    • 2015
      IOC consults Joanna Harper, amends policy to require 12 months of testosterone suppression below 10 nmol.

    • 2018
      Fair Play For Women starts raising concerns with UK and international sports federations. Nicola Williams raises concerns about sport on BBC Woman’s Hour, in discussion of proposed GRA changes.

    • 2019
      We work with Sharron Davies MBE to raise awareness, including a letter to the IOC signed by 60 Olympians (no reply); lobbying sport governing bodies in the UK; meetings with Sport England; and a public meeting with 750 attendees.

      • October
        World Athletics hosts a meeting of international federations in Lausanne to discuss transgender inclusion policy. Joanna Harper and Dr Nicola Williams are among the delegates.

  • 2020
      • February
        World Rugby holds a workshop to determine its transgender policy, with full transparency and speakers from all sides including Fair Play For Women.

      • March
        UK Sports Council Equality Group (SCEG) commissions new guidance on transgender inclusion in female sport.

    • October
      World Rugby announces its new policy: for female safety, no males will be permitted to play women’s international matches. National federations do not adopt the policy.

  • 2021
    • April
      British Cycling and the Rugby Football Union run consultations on transgender policy, but no results published.

      • July
        Three male-born competitors in women’s teams at Tokyo Olympics, including weightlifter Laurel Hubbard. Trans-identifying and “non-binary” females also compete in women’s teams.

      • September
        New SCEG guidance published: trans inclusion in female category is incompatible with fairness and in some cases safety for females. Sport governing bodies must choose.

      • October
        We launch our campaign to engage sport governing bodies in the UK, asking them to meet us to discuss the SCEG report and their response to it.

    • November
      New IOC guidance abandons testosterone suppression, says there should be “no presumed advantage” and tells sports to make their own rules.

    • 2022

    • February
      Trans-identifying male swimmer Lia Thomas wins and sets new records in women’s events at the Ivy League Championship and the NCAA championship in the USA. A trans-identifying female swims in the same event, the women’s competition.
    • March
      Trans-identifying male cyclist Emily Bridges is stopped from racing to qualify for the Commonwealth Games in the Wales women’s team by opposition from female cyclists
    • April
      British Cycling withdraws its transgender inclusion policy, consults with its international federation, UCI.
    • June
      FINA, the international swimming federation, announces a new policy excluding anyone who has been through male puberty from female competition. British Triathlon announces a new policy re-establishing the female category for those born female. UK government minister responsible for sport hosts a round-table meeting of sport chief executives asking for policies that restore the female category.
    • July
      The Rugby Football Union (governing rugby union in England) and Rugby Football League (governing rugby league in England)adopt a revised policy following their international federations, restricting female full-contact rugby to those born female.
    • July
      World Triathlon announces a revised policy based on two years of testosterone suppression and a requirement not to have competed in men’s events for four years. World Boxing announces that its policy will remain sex-based. The Irish RFU and Welsh Rugby adopt sex-based policies as per the RFU and RFL

    • 2023
      In response to proposals from World Athletics, UK Athletics states that testosterone suppression does not work and calls for clarity in UK law. The Equality and Human Rights Commission responds with a statement that it is lawful to exclude all males, even those with a Gender Recognition Certificate, from female sport.

    • March
      In a surprise announcement, World Athletics announces that female events will be open only to those born female, with effect from March 31st.

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