In a significant policy decision, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has introduced new gender eligibility regulations that bar cricketers who have undergone male puberty from competing in international women's cricket, regardless of surgery or gender reassignment treatment. The ICC stated that this move is aimed at safeguarding the integrity of the women's game and ensuring the safety of players.
The decision was made following a nine-month consultation process with stakeholders and prioritises the protection of the women's game's integrity, safety, fairness, and inclusion. As the ICC announced, "The new policy is based on the following principles (in order of priority), protection of the integrity of the women's game, safety, fairness, and inclusion, and this means any Male to Female participants who have been through any form of male puberty will not be eligible to participate in the international women's game regardless of any surgery or gender reassignment treatment they may have undertaken."
The ICC's Board meeting in Ahmedabad saw the adoption of these regulations, with the trigger for the change being cricket's inclusion in the 2028 Olympics. The ICC cited the need to align with Olympic guidelines on gender eligibility, as advised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), as a key reason for this decision. An ICC source stated, "Since cricket will be an Olympic sport, it has to be governed by the Olympic guidelines. This gender issue is a huge one at the global level. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has changed regulations and advised sports to implement regulations that are suitable for their sport, which is what we have done."
This development reflects a broader trend in sports organisations addressing gender eligibility for transgender athletes. World Athletics (WA), for instance, previously implemented regulations barring transgender women who have undergone male puberty from competing in women's events at international competitions. The policy, effective since March 31, 2023, also sets a testosterone level limit for athletes wishing to compete as women. A source noted, "World Athletic (WA), the governing body for track and field and other running competitions, had also barred transgender women, who went through male puberty, from competing in women's events at international competitions."
Other sports bodies, such as cycling (UCI) and swimming (FINA), have introduced similar regulations, while World Rugby has a complete ban on trans women participating in international women's rugby.
The ICC's decision pertains specifically to gender eligibility in international women's cricket, leaving member boards to handle the matter at the domestic level, which may be influenced by local legislation. The ICC clarified, "The review, which was led by the ICC Medical Advisory Committee chaired by Dr. Peter Harcourt, relates solely to gender eligibility for international women's cricket, whilst gender eligibility at the domestic level is a matter for each individual Member Board, which may be impacted by local legislation. The regulations will be reviewed within two years."
ICC Chief Executive Geoff Allardice emphasised that the decision is grounded in science and emerged from extensive consultations. Allardice stated, "The changes to the gender eligibility regulations resulted from an extensive consultation process and is founded in science and aligned with the core principles developed during the review. Inclusivity is incredibly important to us as a sport, but our priority was to protect the integrity of the international women's game and the safety of players."
Additionally, the Chief Executives' Committee (CEC) endorsed plans to accelerate the development of women match officials, including equal match-day pay for ICC umpires across men's and women's cricket and the inclusion of one neutral umpire in every ICC Women's Championship series from January of the following year.
(Inputs from PTI, Powered by AI)
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