(NewsNation) — Ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics, the world's best athletes will face trial runs, drug tests and even sex evaluations, a practice that some deem restrictive and discriminatory.
The 2024 spectacle has already gained attention after World Aquatics banned Lia Thomas, a transgender swimmer from Texas, from competing against her peers in the upcoming summer games.
Though it's currently making waves, there's nearly a century of history surrounding gender evaluation and eligibility for the Olympic games.
Sex testing, also known as sex verification or gender verification, is a process that aims to confirm an athlete's assigned sex at birth and disclose any changes since.
Sex testing came about in the 1940s, typically via visual inspection. As the decades went on, the process evolved to include physical examinations, chromosome testing and testosterone level testing, according to a National Library of Medicine report.
Proponents of testing say it helps exclude athletes with perceived biological advantages, typically in women's sports.
Those against the practice argue it is a discriminatory way to exclude transgender athletes that ignores natural differences in bodies, as cisgender and intersex women with higher testosterone counts are also flagged by this system.
Mandatory sex testing for the Olympics was banned in 1999, as reported by Topend Sports, but some athletes may still have to undergo verification.
While there is no Olympic code requiring athletes to confirm their identity, the International Olympic Committee has left sex and gender to the discretion of each sport's governing body.
Though the IOC recommends international federations follow its 10-step framework method to assess eligibility, federations are not required to abide by those principles when making a decision.
"The IOC will not discriminate against an athlete who has qualified through their IF, on the basis of their gender identity and/or sex characteristics," the Olympics' fairness, inclusion and nondiscrimination article reads.
That means eligibility for transgender or intersex athletes could be at risk if governing bodies decide to prevent athletes from competing on the basis of gender identity, gender expression and sex variations.
"The Framework also does not preclude the possibility of certain athletes being excluded where there is a demonstrated disproportionate advantage and/or safety risk and eligibility criteria are not met," it adds. "What the Framework does suggest is that determinations of disproportionate advantage be based on appropriate evidence, rather than assumed on the basis of an individual’s transgender status and/or sex characteristics."
Giving IFs the power to choose eligibility is a notable step toward less oversight. Just two decades ago, the IOC approved guidelines that allowed transgender athletes to participate if:
Other historical instances of sex testing preventing athletes from competing include Kenyan star track athlete Maximila Imali and South Africa's Caster Semenya, who both had naturally higher testosterone levels.
