Audrey Werro is one of the supporters of genetic testing
Keystone
Anyone who wants to compete on the women’s side at the World Championships in athletics and boxing must undergo a genetic test. The new measure is controversially discussed – and legally contested.
A small prick in the arm or a quick swab of the cheek mucosa – and the new rule in athletics and boxing is already fulfilled. Of course, only if the result is correct. But what result is “correct” in a gender test?
In the highly sensitive situation of sporting equality of opportunity, socio-political uproar and individual gender identity, those responsible for two sports are presenting similar solutions at the same time. At the World Championships in boxing in Liverpool (from September 4) and in athletics in Tokyo (from September 13), only athletes who have undergone a so-called SRY genetic test to determine their biological gender and have a “female” result will be allowed to compete in the women’s category.
Both sports have a history in this regard, and the pressure for reform was great. The new regulation is the subject of controversial debate – even among female athletes. Olympic boxing champion Imane Khelif, who was at the center of a heated gender debate at last year’s games in Paris, filed an appeal with the International Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). There has also been criticism from human rights organizations. Deutsche Presse-Agentur answers the most important questions on this topic.
How does a test like this work?
The female athletes are tested for a gene on the Y chromosome, which is crucial for the development of male sexual characteristics. A cheek swab or a blood sample is sufficient. However, this is preceded by a lengthy information session.
World Athletics wants to request the test results on a random basis. The boxers found a medical facility near Heidelberg for the tests. In some countries, such as Japan, the test required by World Boxing is no longer offered.
How do the athletes react?
Very differently. Jaroslawa Mahutschich, Olympic and world champion in the high jump, is in favor of the test. “It’s another step towards making the sport fair, because the conditions should be the same for all women,” said the Ukrainian on the TV program “Sportpanorama” the Sunday before last. Audrey Werro from Fribourg, Swiss record holder in the 800 m and winner of the Diamond League final in Zurich, is just as pragmatic. “It was no problem for me to take a DNA test. It’s a new rule and we have to follow it.”
Malaika Mihambo, Olympic and world champion in the long jump, on the other hand, is one of the critics of the measure. She sees it as “legally questionable and ethically sensitive”. “Enormous resources are being spent on a very small problem, while the really pressing issues – doping, abuse, violence in sport – continue to exist. If we are talking about integrity, then we have to act at least as resolutely there,” said the 31-year-old German.
How do the associations argue?
It’s about “protecting and preserving the integrity of women’s sport”, says Sebastian Coe, President of World Athletics. Until now, testosterone levels have been used as a criterion in controversial individual cases in athletics. At World Boxing, they justify the measure almost word for word. In a combat sport such as boxing, the aim is also to ensure the “safety of all participants”.
What is the background?
The debate at the Olympic Games in Paris about Khelif and Lin Yu-Ting from Taiwan had put those responsible under pressure. Both had previously been excluded from the World Boxing Championships because, according to the IBA, which has since been suspended by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), they had not fulfilled the required participation criteria. In athletics, the case of Caster Semenya caused a stir. The three-time 800m world champion had been required to undergo hormone treatment to lower her natural testosterone levels in order to compete.
What are the problems?
One of the main criticisms voiced by human rights organizations is that such tests violate privacy. Furthermore, focusing solely on biological characteristics does not do justice to the complexity of gender identity.
According to the German sports physician Wilhelm Bloch, the test can indeed determine the presence of an SRY gene and thus the prerequisite for developing into a man. However, the functionality of the gene is not tested. “The test can therefore only detect intersexuality to a limited extent,” explained the professor from the German Sport University Cologne.
Are gender tests in sport new?
No. Simple physical examinations were already introduced with a view to the 1966 European Athletics Championships in Budapest, because female athletes from the countries of the former Eastern Bloc were suspected of being men at the time. For the 1968 Olympic Games, the IOC ordered swab tests to determine sex chromosomes. After problems and resistance, the IOC discontinued the general tests in 1999. Before the 2015 Women’s World Cup, the players had to present a medical certificate after the team from Equatorial Guinea was found to have abnormalities.