Transgender women allowed to play rugby in France

Transgender women allowed to play rugby in France

Transgender women allowed to play rugby in France. Image: Twitter

Transgender women allowed to play rugby in France.

After the French Rugby Federation board unanimously voted to go against World Rugby guidelines, transgender women will be eligible to play rugby in France’s domestic competitions from next season.

In October, the sport’s global governing body announced that it “does not recommend” transgender women play contact rugby.

Any transgender women must be risk-assessed before being allowed to play domestic rugby, according to draft plans released by England’s Rugby Football Union in March.

The French Rugby Federation (FFR) stated that transgender women could play if they could prove that they had been on hormone therapy for at least 12 months and that their testosterone levels were less than five nanomoles per litre.

“Rugby is an inclusive, sharing sport, without distinction of sex, gender, origin or religion,” FFR vice president Serge Simon said.

“The FFR is against all forms of discrimination and works daily to ensure that everyone can exercise their free will in rugby without constraint.”

In 2020, World Rugby became the first international sports federation to declare that transgender women could not play in the women’s game at an elite or international level.

Previously, the governing body had adopted IOC rules, which mandated that transgender women reduce testosterone levels for at least 12 months prior to competition.

World Rugby, on the other hand, gave national unions leeway on how they implemented rules and recommendations.

The FFR is France’s first national federation to encourage transgender people to compete in elite sports.

As reported by BBC News

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Natasha Brewer

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