British Cycling Restricts Transgender Athletes to Participating in ‘Open’ Category
After a nine-month review and study done by representatives from across British Cycling, Scottish Cycling, and Welsh Cycling, a new participation policy has been announced. Under the new Policy for Competitive Activity, which covers all British Cycling-sanctioned competitive events, transgender women, transgender men, nonbinary individuals and those whose sex was assigned male at birth will be eligible to compete in the ‘Open’ category. The ‘Female’ category will be open only to those whose sex was assigned female at birth and transgender men who are yet to begin hormone therapy.
British Cycling CEO, Jon Dutton, said in a statement, “Our new policies are the product of a robust nine-month review process which we know will have a very real-world impact for our community both now and in the future. We understand that this will be particularly difficult for many of our trans and nonbinary riders, and our commitment to them today is twofold.”
“First, we will continue to assess our policy annually and more frequently as the medical science develops, and will continue to invite those impacted to be an integral part of those conversations. Second, we will also continue to ensure that our non-competitive activities provide a positive and welcoming environment, where everyone can feel like they belong and are respected in our community, and take action to eradicate discrimination from the sport.”
British Cycling stated that trans and nonbinary people can continue to participate in line with their gender identities, in activities including club and coach-led activities, ability based race programmes, community programmes, Talent Development Centres and non-competitive events such as sportives.
The BBC reported that the new policies will prevent riders such as Emily Bridges from being part of the British women’s team. Previously, athletes were allowed to participate if they met testosterone-based regulations. Not so with the new rules.
Bridges, one of the UK’s highest profile transgender athletes, was a promising competitor in junior men’s events before coming out as transgender in 2020. Shortly thereafter, Bridges began hormone therapy as part of her gender dysphoria treatment.
According to the BBC, she then became eligible to compete in elite women’s events under British Cycling’s transgender regulations, which required riders to have had testosterone levels below five nanomoles per liter for a 12-month period prior to competition. But under the new policy, Bridges will likely be banned from competition in the female category.
Bridges reacted to the new policies with a statement on social media, calling the change a “violent act” by a “failed organization” that was “controlling” the conversation on transgender inclusion.
She added that, “a lot of people will think I’m being dramatic, or overplaying how scary things are…it terrifies me to exist at the moment, I have friends getting hate crimed all the time…it is literally a fight for survival for me and my family.”
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