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President Sebastian Coe says it will 'protect the female category'
Transgender women have been banned from competing in the female category at international athletics events.
The decision was made by World Athletics today in order to 'prioritise fairness and the integrity of the female competition before inclusion'.
Seb Coe, the governing body's president, also confirmed athletes from Russia and Belarus would continue to be excluded from competition, including the Olympics, due to the war of Ukraine.
Speaking after a meeting of the global track and field federation's decision-making body, Coe said World Athletics had consulted with stakeholders including 40 national federations, the International Olympic Committee and trans groups about the issue of transgender athletes.
The majority of those consulted stated that transgender athletes should not be competing in the female category," he said.
"Many believe there is insufficient evidence that trans women do not retain advantage over biological women and want more evidence that any physical advantages have been ameliorated before they are willing to consider an option for inclusion into the female category."
World Athletics also amended regulations covering athletes classified as DSD, in other words having "differences of sexual development". The most high-profile DSD athlete is double Olympic 800m champion Caster Semenya of South Africa.
Under the new regulations, in order to compete in the female category, DSD athletes will have to reduce their amount of blood testosterone to below 2.5 nanomoles per litre, down from the current level of five, and remain below this threshold for two years, rather than just one, as is the case now.
The average level of testosterone in women is between 0.5 and 2.4 nmol/l.
World Athletics also removed the principle of restricted events for DSD athletes, meaning regulations now cover all events rather than the previously monitored ones, which were from 400m to one mile
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