Latest news with #gene testing
Malay Mail
03-08-2025
- Sport
- Malay Mail
US runner Nikki Hiltz questions ‘invasive' sex gene test for women athletes, says better to solve abusive coaches and doping problems
EUGENE (Oregon), Aug 3 — Transgender and non-binary US distance runner Nikki Hiltz criticized World Athletics' plans to introduce gene testing for female athletes on Saturday, saying the move would be a 'slippery slope.' Hiltz was assigned female at birth and came out as transgender and non-binary in 2021, and uses they/them pronouns. The US runner described the introduction of gene tests as 'disappointing.' 'Sex testing is a slippery slope,' Hiltz said after booking their place at the Tokyo World Championships with victory in the women's 1,500m at the US trials in Oregon. 'Obviously, I'm gonna do it. I'm not gonna, like, protest it or anything. I just don't like the precedent that it sets,' they said. World Athletics has said its test – which is carried out using a cheek swab or blood test – is 'extremely accurate,' with false positives or negatives seen as 'extremely unlikely'. Hiltz, however, expressed concern that other sporting federations might use more invasive techniques. 'If this is the top (of the sport) setting these rules, how does this trickle down to the NCAA or youth programs?' they asked. 'Sex testing can be very invasive. Like this is just like a harmless cheek swab. Maybe for different organizations, it's not that. And that scares me.' Hiltz called on resources diverted to gene testing to be used for other issues affecting women's sport. 'The biggest thing for me is it's not solving a problem that exists,' they said. 'So what is this time, energy, money going for? It's not a problem that we face. 'What we do face is abusive coaches. Doping allegations. Why aren't we putting our time and energy, money, into that? It's pretty disappointing,' they added. World Athletics' test will test for the SRY gene, which is part of the Y chromosome and causes male characteristics to develop. If the athlete tests negative for the Y chromosome they are eligible to compete in the female category in world ranking competitions. If it is positive, they can only compete in the female category in non-world ranking competitions or in another category other than the female one. Athletics has long considered introducing eligibility criteria for women's events, amid questions over biological advantages for transgender athletes and those with differences of sex development (DSD). Transgender women who have gone through male puberty are currently banned by World Athletics from competing in women's events, while the federation requires female DSD athletes whose bodies produce high testosterone levels to take medication to lower them in order to be eligible. — AFP
New York Times
31-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
World Athletics confirm gene testing for female eligibility ahead of World Championships
World Athletics has confirmed that gene testing for female eligibility will come into effect in time for the Tokyo World Championships in September. The test will be enforced from September 1 and will consist of a once-in-a-lifetime cheek swab or blood test — whichever is more convenient — to detect the presence of the SRY gene, which is involved in male-typical sex development and is found on the Y chromosome. Advertisement In March, World Athletics (WA) president Sebastian Coe said the test would be introduced to maintain the 'integrity of competition'. 'We are saying, at elite level, for you to compete in the female category, you have to be biologically female,' Coe said, in a press release on WA's website on Wednesday. 'It was always very clear to me and the World Athletics Council that gender cannot trump biology. It is really important in a sport that is permanently trying to attract more women that they enter a sport believing there is no biological glass ceiling.' The governing body outlined the parameters of the female category on their website to include biological males who have not gone through male sexual development, including puberty, and biological males with a difference of sex development who 'satisfy the transitional provisions issued by WA'. The transitional provisions do not apply to transgender women, however, as WA say there are none competing at elite level under the current regulations. The regulation followed recommendations from the Gender Diverse Athlete Working Group, which WA say 'spent over a year studying developments in law, science, sports and society concerning gender-diverse athletes'. The World Championships begin in Tokyo on September 13.
