Transgender Athletes Banned From Rugby League Top Events

Posted by: Kyeyune Andrew Jonathan in Rugby June 21, 2022

Transgender athletes have been banned from playing international games by the Rugby League as it does further research on its inclusion policy.

According to the sports governing body, it is important to balance the individual’s right to participate, especially against perceived risk to other participants.

This move comes as many other sports are wrestling over trans inclusions. On Sunday, transgender swimmers faced a ban from women’s elite races if they have gone through male puberty.

The International Rugby League (IRL) said it had considered “relevant developments in world sport” in coming to its decision to ban transgender athletes until it had completed research on its final inclusion policy.

The league even decided that the ban would apply to the World Cup in October 2022. The competition involves teams from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Cook Islands, England, France, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea.

“It is the IRL’s responsibility to balance the individual’s right to participate – a long-standing principle of rugby league and at its heart from the day it was established – against perceived risk to other participants, and to ensure all are given a fair hearing,” the organization said.

Based on the best possible evidence, the body is also continuously working towards developing a set of criteria. This will hopefully balance the individual’s right to play with the safety of all participants.

A number of sports have been considering their inclusion policies in recent months. This happened especially after a ruling by the International Olympic Committee earlier this year.

It said each sport should determine participation policies governing transgender athletes depending on particular characteristics of the sport itself.

The IRL said it would work with the nations competing at the women’s Rugby League World Cup. This is to obtain data to inform a transgender policy in 2023.

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