The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) has defended its transgender policy after Austin Killips became the first transgender to win an official UCI women’s stage race by winning the Tour of the Gila in New Mexico.
The 27-year-old athlete from America won the race on Sunday after clinching the fifth stage and also claimed the Queen of the Mountains polka dot jersey awarded to the best climber.
The UCI has acknowledged that transgender athletes may wish to compete in accordance with their gender identity and that their rules are based on the latest scientific knowledge and have been applied consistently.
Responding to criticism, the organization has also stated that it continues to follow the evolution of scientific findings and may change its rules in the future as scientific knowledge evolves.
Last year, the UCI updated its rules around the participation of transgender athletes, announcing that transgender women must have serum testosterone levels of 2.5 nanomoles per liter or below for at least 24 months to compete in women’s categories.
Despite this, critics such as former Olympic cyclist Inga Thompson and sports scientist Ross Tucker have called on sports like cycling to “respect women’s rights” and criticized UCI’s policy on transgender athletes competing in women’s categories.
Speaking to the media, Killips thanked her fans for their support during a testing time when she was facing huge criticism and nonsense over social media.
The Tour of the Gila organizers said that they must follow the rules and regulations set forth by the UCI but recognized the passionate debate regarding rider eligibility and called on the UCI and USA Cycling to host an open discussion on the matter.
