Sara Symington, who led the 2000 and 2004 Olympics and is now one of Britain’s top sports figures, is among 76 women who have asked the cycling board, the UCI, to repeal its rules on trans women to “guarantee justice for female athletes”. Trans women are allowed to compete in the women’s category if their testosterone levels fall below 5 nmol / L for at least 12 months. However, UCI President David Lappartient said last week that the rules of the sport “probably were not enough” to balance fairness and participation. In their letter, the signatories – which includes many Olympians, academics and researchers – state that these words must now be matched with immediate action. “We believe that rule 13.5.015 does not guarantee female athletes” fair and substantial competition that promotes and rewards the fundamental values of the concept of sport “, the letter states. “We believe that the rule is asymmetric and therefore discriminatory, as it only benefits biological male athletes, giving them more opportunities to compete and enjoy the rewards of sport at the highest level.” The letter states that unless the UCI can provide “strong scientific evidence that the rule guarantees fairness to female athletes”, it should immediately cancel 13.5.015 and apply eligibility criteria for the female category based on female biological characteristics”. The remarkable intervention comes less than a week after Bridges, who set a men’s national record for 25 miles in 2018, was temporarily excluded from her first race in the women’s category at the Omnium National Championship last Saturday. Officially, Bridges stopped due to a dispute over eligibility, but, as the Guardian initially reported, several women planned to boycott the event if Bridges competed. The letter reads: “Recently, female athletes in the United Kingdom have shown that they were willing to boycott their own National Championship competition to make the UCI and British Cycling listen to their concerns about justice in their sport. This is how seriously the athletes take this issue and we have great respect for what our sisters were willing to sacrifice to make their voices heard. “We regret that this should never have been necessary.” Other Britons signing the letter include Yvonne McGregor, who won the bronze medal in Sydney in 2000, and Mandy Bishop, the 1982 World Road Champion. Boris Johnson added his voice to the debate on Thursday, saying: “I do not think biological males should compete in female sporting events. Maybe this is a controversial thing to say, but it just makes sense to me. “If this brings me into conflict with others, then we have to solve everything. “It does not mean that I do not like people who want to change their gender, to move, and it is vital that we give people the maximum love and support in making these decisions.”
