The International Rugby League (IRL), the worldwide governing body for rugby league football, announced a ban on male-to-female (MTF) trans athletes from events for biological females.
A June 20 statement by the IRL confirmed the prohibition, adding that it will remain in place "until further research is conducted." The body's announcement means that MTF rugby athletes will not be allowed to play in international events sanctioned by the group, including the Women's Rugby World Cup in England.
"In the interests of avoiding unnecessary welfare, legal and reputational risk to IRL competitions and those competing therein, the IRL believes there is a requirement and responsibility to further consult and complete additional research before finalizing its policy."
"The IRL reaffirms its belief that rugby league is a game for all, and that anyone and everyone can play our sport. It is the IRL's responsibility to balance the individual's right to participate – a longstanding 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.
Other sports federations also followed the footsteps of the governing body for rugby. Sebastian Coe, president of World Athletics, put in his two cents on the issue.
"We see an international federation asserting its primacy in setting rules, regulations and policies that are in the best interest of the sport. This is as it should be," said the leader of the governing body for athletics. "We have always believed, and repeated constantly, that biology trumps gender and we will continue to review our regulations in line with this."
Coe added: "My responsibility is to protect the integrity of women's sport and we take that very seriously. If it means that we have to make adjustments to protocols going forward, we will."
"I've always made it clear – if we ever get pushed into a corner to that point where we're making a judgment about fairness or inclusion, I will always fall down on the side of fairness."
Meanwhile, the International Swimming Federation said it intends to set up an open category to enable trans athletes to compete. It added that MTF swimmers can only complete in female events if they can "prove they have not experienced any element of male puberty. The International Cycling Union has also tightened regulations on transgender cyclists' eligibility by doubling the time period before an MTF athlete can compete.
Female athletes to speak out against trans takeover of women's sports
Biological female athletes are now speaking out against the invasion of MTF transgenders in their respective sports. The accusations of transphobia have not dissuaded them from airing their frustrations toward competing against biological males. A rally titled "Our Bodies Our Sports," scheduled on June 23 at Washington, D.C., aims to "keep women's sports single-sex athletic competitions."
"Recently, women's sports have come under attack. On the 5oth anniversary of Title IX, join us in celebrating female athletes, and help us preserve single-sex athletic competition," said a description for the gathering. Speakers in the rally include former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (R-HI), skateboarder Taylor Silverman and swimmer Riley Gaines. Both Silverman and Gaines competed in women's sports competitions, only to lose to an MTF transgender competitor.
Gaines, who is on the women's swimming team of the University of Kentucky, lost to MTF trans swimmer William "Lia" Thomas for fifth place during a March 2022 collegiate swimming competition. Meanwhile, Silverman ended up in second place during a December 2021 skateboarding event after losing to MTF competitor Lillian Gallagher. (Related: End the trans madness! Swimming magazine calls on NCAA to act now.)
"As a collegiate female athlete who got to firsthand witness and experience competing against a transgender athlete, I can confidently say the biological differences between males and females are evident and cannot be ignored when it comes [to] athletics," said the swimmer.
"I thought it was unfair at the time. I was really uncomfortable. I just participated and went through the motions of a contest, [and] I would try to be a good sportsman," shared Silverman. "But the more that I sat with it and thought about it, the more I felt like I needed to say something."
"I recognize that this is an issue bigger than skateboarding [because] this is impacting all different sports, and girls and women on all levels."
Watch InfoWars founder Alex Jones discussing Joe Rogan's remarks about MTF transgender athletes being an "assault on women's sports" below.
This video is from the InfoWars channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:
Female skateboarder speaks out following loss to MTF trans competitor.
Female swimmer at UPenn claims trans teammate Lia Thomas is "mentally ill."
Transgender swimmer dominating women’s circuit after competing on men's team for years.
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