More than 80 human rights and sport advocacy organisations have urged the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to abandon reported proposals for universal genetic sex testing of female athletes and a sweeping ban on transgender and intersex competitors.
A joint statement from the Sport & Rights Alliance (SRA), ILGA World, Humans of Sport, and other groups warned that the measures, reportedly recommended by the IOC's Protection of the Female Category Working Group, would severely undermine gender equity in sport.
Andrea Florence, executive director of the SRA, condemned the potential policy, stating it would represent a 'catastrophic erosion of women's rights and safety'. She added: 'Gender policing and exclusion harms all women and girls, and undermines the very dignity and fairness the IOC claims to uphold.'
The IOC, which is expected to reveal the working group's findings in the first half of 2026, previously ceased universal sex testing after the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. International bodies, including the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN Women, and the World Medical Association, have denounced sex testing and related interventions as discriminatory and harmful.
Payoshni Mitra, executive director of Humans of Sport, highlighted that it 'violates women's and girls' privacy' and exposes child athletes to safeguarding risks. Advocates also argued that prohibiting transgender and intersex athletes disregards the significant barriers they already face.
'Sport should be a place of belonging,' said Julia Ehrt, ILGA World's Executive Director. The groups contend these reported proposals directly contradict the IOC's own 2021 Framework on Fairness, Inclusion and Non‑Discrimination.
