World Athletics to genetic test all athletes in female category
The new regulations will include cheek swab tests or dry blood tests to verify the biological sex of athletes
Kevin Morris
During the 2025 World Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China, the World Athletics Council met to address the issue of fairness and eligibility in the female category in track and field. The council claims to reaffirm its commitment to women’s sports by upholding the 2023 policy ruling that only biological female athletes may compete in the category, and the governing body is taking firmer steps to introduce mandatory pre-clearance testing for all competitors in female events.
On Tuesday, World Athletics president Sebastian Coe announced the decision, calling it “an important way of providing confidence and maintaining that absolute focus on the integrity of competition. The pre-clearance testing aims to ensure a level playing field for female athletes while respecting the rights and dignity of all participants.” The testing is intended to ensure that trans women and women with DSD (disorders of sexual development) are kept out of competition, as per World Athletics rules.
According to Coe, the new regulations will include non-invasive cheek swab tests or dry blood tests to verify the biological sex of athletes. The tests would only need to be conducted once per female athlete to show that they do not have the SRY gene, which determines male sex in humans and most other mammals.
The tests will determine whether an athlete may have transitioned to female after male puberty or possesses differences of sex development (DSD) that confer a testosterone-based performance advantage. These measures are designed to address concerns over fairness.
🔴 World Athletics president hopes to have kits in place before World Championships in Tokyo this September
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World Athletics plans to implement the new testing rules for the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo this September and says they are currently in the process of identifying testing providers and finalizing procedures. Once finalized, World Athletics says it will determine a timeline for achieving fairness and transparency while ensuring that all athletes are treated with respect.
