Mark Jacobs 
The World Boxing Council has announced plans to create a new category for transgender boxers. Citing safety concerns, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman told the British newspaper The Telegraph, “A man fighting a woman must never be accepted regardless of gender change.”
Sulaiman said the WBC would put out a call in 2023 for transgender fighters willing to compete in a separate league or tournament competition. Trans fighters born male would only be eligible to fight other trans fighters born male and trans fighters born female would only fight other trans fighters born female. The British Boxing Board of Control is also considering following the WBC’s lead.
The participation of trans athletes in women’s sports has been a hotly debated topic, particularly within the combat sports world. Mixed martial arts has seen at least two trans fighters compete professionally in the women’s division. Fallon Fox last fought in 2014 and Alana McLaughlin debuted last year. Organizations like the International Mixed Martial Arts Federation and the Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports in the United States have examined the issue within the last year but haven’t come out with any final guidelines.
Boxing, Boxing news, Gender, News
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