CULTURE secretary Nadine Dorries is set to urge domestic sports to follow the example of swimming’s world governing body FINA and impose strict regulations on the participation of transgender athletes.
Dorries will push for the adoption of a uniform policy when she meets officials from a number of domestic sport’s governing bodies and Sport England in London on Tuesday.
FINA’s announcement that it would ban transgender athletes who had gone through male puberty from competing in women’s events, and will instead seek to establish an "open" category, was welcomed by Dorries last week.
Writing in the Mail on Sunday, Dorries said she will make it “crystal clear” that she expected the domestic bodies to follow suit.
She added: “I’m setting a very clear line on this: competitive women’s sport must be reserved for people born of the female sex. Not someone who was born male, took puberty blockers or has suppressed testosterone, but unequivocally and unarguably someone who was born female.
“I want all of our sporting governing bodies to follow that policy.”
Policies with regard to elite-level athletes are generally set by the respective international governing bodies.
The Football Association and British Cycling are among the domestic governing bodies that are currently reviewing their policies at grass-roots level in light of the FINA ruling.
