USA Swimming, the governing body for competitive swimming in the United States, revised its Athlete Inclusion Procedures on Feb. 1, 2022, emphasizing procedures for Transgender athletes who have transitioned from male to female.
"The USA Swimming Athlete Gender Inclusion, Competitive Equity, and Eligibility Policy (this 'Policy') is based on the objectives of inclusion, non-discrimination, fair play, participants' health and safety, and protection of privacy," read the new procedures.
The updated policy applies to all athletes participating in a competition category, such as male or female, that is different than the biological gender assigned to the athletes at birth. This includes current USA Swimming athletes, former USA Swimming athletes who wish to compete in a competition category separate from the category in which the athlete was previously registered, athletes who wish to join USA Swimming, and athletes who wish to compete in an "elite event" or to set an American record.
Athletes to which this updated policy applies to must notify the USA Swimming senior director for legal & membership affairs.
Athletes who have transitioned from female to male must satisfy the "Self-Identity Verification." Athletes who have transitioned from male to female must also satisfy it, as well as the "Elite Event Fairness Conditions" if the they wish to compete in an elite event or have their competitive time recognized by USA Swimming as an American record.
Self-Identity Verification
"The purpose of the Self-Identity Verification is to confirm that the athlete's transition to a competition category different than that assigned at birth is bona fide and that the gender identity applicable for purposes of swimming competition is consistent with the athlete's gender identity in everyday life," read the new procedures.
Athletes must submit a Self-Identity Verification request to the USA Swimming senior director for legal & membership affairs at least 30 days prior to the start of the first competition.
Following that, the director may approve or deny the request, seek additional information from the athlete prior to approving or denying the request, or refer the request to a three-person panel consisting of a physician with experience in gender identity issues, a ten-year athlete representative, and a member of USA Swimming's Safe Sport Committee.
If approved, an athlete cannot initiate the process to switch back to the previous competition category for one year following the date that the initial request was approved.
If denied, the request will be sent to a panel.
Elite Athlete Fairness Evaluation
"From a medical perspective, the prior physical development of the athlete as a Male, as mitigated by any medical intervention, does not give the athlete a competitive advantage over the athlete's cisgender Female competitors," read the new procedures.
They procedures also say, "The purpose of the Elite Athlete/Event Fairness Evaluation process is to ensure that athletes competing in the Female competition category who have transitioned from a Male biological gender assignment at birth do not have an unfair advantage over their cisgender Female competitors in Elite Events."
This evaluation is strictly for athletes who transitioned from male to female. They must submit the application to the senior director for legal & membership affairs at least 90 days prior to the start of the first elite event for the female competition category. The senior director will then submit the application to a panel of three independent medical experts, according to the report.
It will be assumed that athletes are ineligible unless they demonstrate that "the concentration of testosterone in the athlete's serum has been less than 5 nmol/L" continuously for at least 36 months prior to the date of the application, according to the report.
Additionally, athletes must provide at least three separate blood tests within the past 365 days prior to submitting the application, with the last test being taken within 90 days prior to the athlete's application.
Upon evaluation, the panel will consider the athlete's medical file, serum testosterone results, and any other additional information submitted by the athlete.
According to the report, the panel may request further information from the athlete or their treating physicians, such as additional testing (excluding gynecology exams or other invasive examinations), and the athlete must fully cooperate with the panel's evaluation efforts.
"In order to maintain eligibility, if the Application is approved, the athlete must keep the athlete's serum testosterone concentration below 5 nmol/L and comply with any other conditions of the Elite Athlete/Event Fairness Panel's approval for so long as the athlete wishes to compete in the Female category in Elite Events," read the report.
The panel will establish an internal plan for continued monitoring of the athlete's compliance with eligibility criteria. The athlete is not allowed to change a swimming competition category back to male for a period for four years following the approval of the application.
If denied, athletes may appeal the panel decision by requesting a review hearing with an appeals body.
Human Rights Campaign speaks out
Following the updated provisions for USA Swimming, Joni Madison, the interim president of the Human Rights Campaign spoke out.
"By caving to the avalanche of ill-informed, prejudiced attacks targeted at one particular transgender swimmer, USA Swimming has created a deeply unequitable policy that could disqualify current transgender athletes who worked tirelessly to comply with rules that were already in place, as well as those who want to play in the future," said Madison. "This flawed, discriminatory policy is the direct consequence of the NCAA stepping back from its responsibility to protect all student athletes — including transgender people — from discrimination. In the end, the responsibility and the blame is theirs."
The Transgender swimmer to which the HRC refers to is University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas, who broke numerous records in women's swimming.
After ten years of maintaining a standard policy for all Transgender athletes, the NCAA — which regulates student athletes from North American schools — updated its policy this past January, which leaves eligibility requirements for Transgender athletes up to each sport's governing body.
The NCAA has chosen not to adopt USA Swimming's updated policy for the remainder of this school year.