Explainer: The rules for transgender athletes at 2024 Paris Olympics

The Paris Olympics are set to make history as the first gender-equal games as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has created equal opportunities for male and female athletes, who are participating. The quota places were distributed 50:50, making the Olympic Games Paris 2024 gender equal. But the Games also face a massive challenge of adjusting all the athletes into one of two gender categories. 

However, the new rules in regard to athletes who can compete as women have changed for the 2024 Games amid concerns about transgender athletes. Critics often say that transgender women have an unfair advantage over fellow competitors. 

Hence, the IOC devised a framework for fairness and inclusion on the basis of gender identity and sex variations. It said that every person has the right to practise sport without discrimination and in a way that respects their health, safety and dignity. 

Also read: Olympic Games: Why boxers must be clean-shaven and wrestlers have to carry handkerchief 

IOC said that the credibility of competitive sports relies on a level playing field, where no athlete has an unfair and disproportionate advantage over the rest. It also said that it seeks to promote a safe and welcoming environment for everyone. 

The framework instituted by IOC focuses on ensuring fairness in the women's category. However, the governing body hasn't issued regulations that define eligibility criteria for every sport, leaving it up to federations to determine if an athlete was at a disproportionate advantage. 

But first, let's discuss, what makes an Olympic athlete female. As mentioned, the criteria differ from sport to sport and it's possible that a competitor who meets the qualifications to compete in track and field events does not qualify to compete as a woman in tennis. Notably, each sport's international federation has the right to make the final call on who can compete as a woman and who cannot. 

The 10-point IOC framework moves away from the old policy that said transgender athletes would be allowed to compete provided their testosterone levels were below 10 nanomoles per litre for at least 12 months before their first competition. 

Also read: 2024 Paris Olympics: Know why running track has been painted purple 

Laurel Hubbard's case at 2021 Games 

New Zealand weightlifter Laurel Hubbard in Tokyo became the first transgender athlete to compete at the Olympic Games. A case that sparked controversy, with some calling it a step forward for trans athletes and some saying that she had an unfair advantage. Now, the rules have changed and she won't be able to participate. 

The eligibility in some sporting events depends on exactly when the transition must have occurred for participants. For example, in order to compete in weightlifting, swimming and track and field, athletes must not have advanced in male puberty past Tanner Stage 2 (the stage where testicles and penis begin to expand and pubic hair develops) or past the age of 12, whichever comes first. In 2022, FINA (now World Aquatics), the International Swimming Federation, said it would only allow trans swimmers who transitioned before the age of 12 to compete. 

However, the criteria are not the same as other sports as some keep testosterone levels in consideration. In tennis, transgender women need to have testosterone levels below five nanomoles per litre for the preceding 12 months. Transgender athletes competing in the female division for the triathlon and archery must have levels less than 2.5 nanomoles per litre over a period of 24 months. 

Watch: What are the less-known facts about the Olympics? 

Some sports, including World Rugby and the World Boxing Council, have entirely banned transgender women. World Rugby said in a report, "Transgender men may play men's rugby having provided confirmation of physical ability. Transgender men may not play women's rugby after the process of sex reassignment has begun if this reassignment includes supplementation with testosterone." 

Notably, women who identify as women and were assigned the gender of a woman at birth yet have naturally high testosterone levels, face additional restrictions. High testosterone levels in females are frequently the consequence of a disorder classified as a difference in sex development, or DSD. 

Are there any transgender athletes at 2024 Olympics? 

US runner Nikki Hiltz, who is transgender and non-binary, was assigned female at birth, won the 1500-meter race at the US Olympic Trials and qualified for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. 

Hiltz uses the pronouns "they/them" and often faces public scrutiny. In a July 6, 2024, post on Instagram, Hiltz said, "I felt exhausted from explaining what nonbinary meant to the track and field community over and over again. Headlines would read 'trans runner Nikki Hiltz..' and automatically I was assumed either someone assigned male at birth or a trans man who was taking testosterone." 

(With inputs from agencies)