The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) has taken an unprecedented step by adjusting its eligibility policy to require all players on the Tour to undergo a gender test.
The new approach, first reported on Sunday by Bounces, means that players will have to undergo an one-off test for the presence of the SRY gene, which is part of the Y chromosome and is responsible for the development of male characteristics. It can be conducted via swap, blood or saliva testing.
Until this week, the WTA had allowed transgender women to play on the Tour as long as their testosterone levels had been below 2.5 nmol/L continuously for the previous two years. There are currently no publicly known transgender players competing on the Tour, and very few have historically. The only major case involved Renée Richards, who competed on the women’s Tour during the late 1970s and early 1980s. Richards later became the coach of Martina Navratilova, who has repeatedly criticised the presence of transgender athletes in women’s sports.
“The WTA’s women’s eligibility policy is designed to promote equal athletic opportunities in women’s professional tennis and maintain fair competition for all players participating in WTA tournaments,” the WTA said.
“Since first being introduced in 1975, the eligibility policy has undergone periodic review in light of developments across international sport.
“Following the most recent review, which included consultation with WTA members and evolving standards across women’s sport, the WTA board approved an updated WTA women’s eligibility policy beginning in 2026 based on biological sex.”
Players will not be allowed to play on the Tour if they fail the sex test, but there can be complications to this. It is possible that somebody who has lived as a woman their entire life can test positive for an SRY gene in certain circumstances. This can be due to a person having a complete androgen insensitivity syndrome and having not gone through male sexual development. There are also other types of rare genetic disorders of sexual development.
The accuracy of the test has also split opinion. Another sporting body, World Athletics, is also using the system and fully supports it. However, Prof Andrew Sinclair from Australia argues that the test identifies the gene but doesn’t show how it is impacting the person’s athletic ability. Questions about the procedure were also highlighted last summer in a study published in the British Medical Journal.
“The WTA recognises that this is a sensitive and complex issue and is committed to treating all players with dignity and implementing the policy in a respectful and thoughtful way.” The governing body commented.
The WTA has its global headquarters in Florida, America, where there has been extensive debate surrounding transgender athletes among the country’s politicians. Earlier this week, a White House official confirmed the 2031 Women’s World Cup will be hosted in America, with an official telling Politico ‘that it is important that women play in the Women’s World Cup and not biological men.’
President Donald Trump has also previously said the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028 should only feature athletes playing in the events that align with their biological sex. Something the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has since made into its policy.
It should be noted that these debates in America surrounding transgender athletes are related to sports outside of tennis. The WTA eligibility policy on sex testing is based on the laws of the state of Florida, excluding Florida conflict of law principles. Therefore, disputes that arise will be conducted according to these laws.
The WTA’S updated eligibility can be viewed in full HERE.
