IOC launches new guidelines for transgender, intersex athletes ahead of Paris Olympics

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Tuesday released new framework for transgender, nonbinary and intersex athletes. According to the fresh guidelines recommends elite sports organizations to re-evaluate and decide on the eligibility criteria in their sport. The IOC’s guidelines are not legally binding, and international sports federations could decide on the implementation of the same.

The framework revealed by the IOC places responsibility on individual federations of sports to determine eligibility criteria for transgender, nonbinary and intersex athletes. The 10-point document has been released in an attempt to find a solution for enabling a fair competition of such athletes before Paris 2024. The framework will replace IOC guidelines issued in 2015. The fresh guideline changes the requirement of transgender women to suppress testosterone levels to take part in female events.

New guidelines for the inclusion of transgender Olympic athletes

According to the old policy, transgender athletes would only be allowed to compete if their testosterone levels were below a certain limit for at least 12 months before the commencement of the competition. The new guideline looks to change this, and the levels of testosterone alone in female events will no longer be seen as an ‘unfair advantage’. The framework will see some big changes by the Paris Olympics.

As per the IOC release, the framework has been prepared after over two years in consultation with more than 250 athletes and other stakeholders. The members included in the consultation process saw the likes of representatives from lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex communities and athletes of all gender identities, IFs and National Olympic Committees, human rights organisations and the IOC Legal Affairs Commission. The new framework will be implemented soon after Beijing Winter Games next year.

Tokyo Olympics 2020 'handing over' to Paris 2024 done in space

The handover from #Tokyo2020 to #Paris2024 was literally 'out of this world' on August 8, when the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) completed the gesture. In a video shared, two astronauts from each side were seen holding the 'Paris 2024' flag in space. The video was to denote the next Olympic and Paralympic Games host country, France. Meanwhile, the next Winter Olympics will be in Bejing, China in 2022.

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