Only biological female athletes, whose gender has been determined by a one-time gene-screening test, will now be eligible to take part in female category events at the Olympic Games, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said on Thursday.

The IOC unveiled its new policy, following an 18-month consultation phase, on the protection of the female category as part of its initiative to have a universal rule for competitors in female elite sports after years of fragmented regulation that led to major controversies.

The new rules essentially stop transgender athletes from competing in female category events at the Olympics. They had previously been eligible to compete at the Olympics once cleared by their respective federations.

All athletes wanting to qualify or take part in female category events from the LA2028 Olympics onwards will have to undergo an SRY gene test to determine their eligibility.

“Based on scientific evidence, the IOC considers that the presence of the SRY gene is fixed throughout life and represents highly accurate evidence that an athlete has experienced male sex development,” the IOC said in a statement.

The IOC had long declined to apply any universal rule on transgender participation in the Olympics and in 2021 instructed international federations to come up with their own guidelines.

New IOC President Kirsty Coventry did a U-turn immediately after taking over in June last year, saying her organisation would take the lead for a uniform approach.

“At the Olympic Games, even the smallest margins can be the difference between victory and defeat,” Coventry said in the statement.

“So, it is absolutely clear that it would not be fair for biological males to compete in the female category. In addition, in some sports it would simply not be safe.”

The new rules have no retroactive power and no impact on grassroots or amateur sports.

Rare exceptions

There are exceptions, the IOC said, for rare cases of sex development.

“With the rare exception of athletes with a diagnosis of Complete Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (CAIS) or other rare differences/disorders in sex development (DSDs) who do not benefit from the anabolic and/or performance-enhancing effects of testosterone, no athlete with an SRY-positive screen is eligible for competition in the female category at an IOC event,” the IOC said.

The Paris 2024 Olympics were hit by a major gender row involving two boxers competing in the female categories, who both won gold in their weight classes.

A year earlier, they had been banned from the world championships by their international federation over a gender eligibility test.

Federation rules

Some federations, including athletics, swimming and rugby union, had already drawn up their own rules, barring athletes who have gone through male puberty from competing in the women’s class. Many smaller federations, however, had yet to finalise their own regulations on the matter.

World Athletics is among sporting organisations which have already adopted gender testing, introducing a one-off SRY gene test obtained by a cheek swab for all female athletes ahead of last year’s World Championships in Tokyo.

Even before the IOC policy announcement, however, human rights and sports advocacy groups voiced their opposition to any gender testing.

Only a handful of openly transgender athletes have taken part in the Games. New Zealand’s Laurel Hubbard became the first to compete in a different gender category to that assigned at birth when the weightlifter took part in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

US President Donald Trump last year banned transgender athletes from competing in school, college and pro events in the female category in the United States, as Los Angeles prepares to host the 2028 Summer Olympics.

Trump, who signed the “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” order in February 2025, has said he would not allow transgender athletes to compete at the LA Games.

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LAHORE: Preparations are complete for the opening match of the 11th edition of the HBL Pakistan Super League, with defe­nding champions Lahore Qalandars taking on debutants Hyderabad Kings­men in a behind-closed-doors contest at the Gadd­afi Stadium on Thursday.

Captains of all eight participating teams addressed a joint pre-tournament press conference here on Wednesday, while the sides also conducted practice sessions at the LCCA ground.

Signs of PSL activity were evident throughout the Gaddafi Stadium vicinity.

Shaheen Shah Afridi (Lahore Qalandars), Babar Azam (Peshawar Zalmi), David Warner (Karachi Kings), Shadab Khan (Islamabad United), Mar­nus Labuschagne (Hydera­bad Kingsmen), Ashton Turner (Multan Sultans), Mohammad Rizwan (Rawalpindi Pindiz) and Saud Shakeel (Quetta Gladiators) expressed optimism about a competitive tournament ahead, even as they lamented the absence of spectators due to the Pakistan Cricket Board’s austerity measures.

The decision follows the government’s energy conservation policy amid the ongoing USA-Israel conflict with Iran.

Pakistan’s ODI captain Shaheen Shah Afridi voiced confidence in Lahore Qalandars mounting a strong title challenge, aiming for a fourth triumph.

“We will try our best to win the title once again. The boys prepared well during practice sessions in Islamabad before arriving in Lahore and we are looking forward to playing good cricket,” he said.

Shaheen noted that the PSL had produced several quality players for the national side over the past decade and hoped the trend would continue. How­ever, he declined to comment when asked whether he should relinquish the T20 captaincy in favour of focusing solely on ODIs.

“Let us keep our discussion limited to the PSL,” he remarked.

Former Pakistan captain Rizwan, who is leading Rawalpindi Pindiz, offered measured remarks on the league’s contribution to national cricket when questioned about expectations for the next 10 years.

“PSL is a commendable initiative of the PCB. Credit for taking it to this stage also goes to Najam Sethi, who launched it in 2016. The recent sale of a team for Rs245 crore shows how far we have come. While the nation may be disappointed with the current state of Pakistan cricket, as Shaheen mentioned, promising players are emerging from the junior ranks and we should remain hopeful,” Rizwan said.

He added that the national team’s combination was not yet settled, with some players perhaps not in their ideal roles.

“Once we sort these thi­ngs out, Pakistan will rise again and the nation will be happy,” he observed.

Peshawar Zalmi skipper Babar acknowledged that his side’s bowling had struggled in the past but stressed the need for better execution of plans.

Regarding the lack of live spectators, Babar said crowds always provided a significant morale boost.

“We will miss them and they will miss us too. But we will try to play entertaining cricket so that fans can enjoy the action on their television screens,” he said.

Hyderabad Kingsmen captain Labuschagne said his team, making its PSL debut, was ready to compete despite the pressure inherent in any major league.

“We have discussed the roles of our players and our match strategies in detail and we trust their skills. This is a new chapter for the Kingsmen and a great opportunity to showcase what we can do,” he remarked.

Karachi Kings’ Warner highlighted the strength of his squad and expressed hope that the team would build on its performance from the previous season.

Multan Sultans captain Turner described the PSL as one of the finest T20 leagues in the world, featuring several talented players.

“I am eagerly looking forward to competing alongside them in the coming days,” he said.

Islamabad United skipper Shadab was asked about his inconsistent performances and whether they might affect his prospects of captaining the national T20 side, but he did not get the opportunity to respond as the questio­ner directed different queries to multiple captains.

In the previous 10 editions of the PSL, Lahore Qala­ndars (2022, 2023, 2025) and Islamabad Uni­ted (2016, 2018, 2024) have each won three titles. Pes­hawar Zalmi (2017), Multan Sultans (2021), Quetta Gladiators (2019) and Kar­achi Kings (2020) have lifted the trophy once apiece.

Two new franchises — Rawalpindi Pindiz and Hyderabad Kingsmen — have joined the league this season.

Multan Sultans, meanwhile, underwent a change of ownership after previous owner Ali Tareen parted ways with the PCB; the team was auctioned to new owners, who subsequently renamed it Rawalpindi Pindiz in line with PSL regulations.

Sialkot Stallions were ini­tially introduced as the eighth team but were later rebranded as Multan Sult­ans after a change in ownership.

Published in Dawn, March 26th, 2026

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MIAMI: Jannik Sinner powered into the Miami Open quarter-finals on Tuesday, defeating unseeded American Alex Michelsen in straight sets to stay on course for the “Sunshine Double”.

Italian second seed Sinner, who is bidding to follow up his triumph at Indian Wells with victory in Miami, bided his time before completing a 7-5, 7-6(7/4) win in 1hr 41min.

The four-time Grand Slam champion, who will face 19th seed Frances Tiafoe in the last eight, was made to work hard by the 40th-ranked Michelsen.

After a cagey opening Sinner began to put pressure on Michelsen’s serve in the ninth game of the first set, carving out three break points.

Michelsen rode out that storm, but Sinner finally broke through in the 11th game before serving out for the first set.

Michelsen hit back in the second set, breaking Sinner for a 4-2 lead before holding to go 5-2 up.

Michelsen appeared to struggle with the bright late afternoon sunlight on the Hard Rock Stadium’s main court and Sinner came roaring back to force a tiebreak.

Sinner sealed the win with a thumping serve that Michelsen could only return wide.

“I feel like I served very well in important moments and that helped me out, especially in the tough moments,” said Sinner, who unfurled 15 aces to Michelsen’s three.

“But today was not easy — I played a night match yesterday and today in the daytime, so the conditions were very different.”

Home hope Tiafoe advanced to his quarter-final date with Sinner after battling past France’s Terence Atmane 6-4, 1-6, 6-4.

Spanish qualifier Martin Landaluce, ranked 151st in the world, upset American 32nd seed Sebastian Korda to score a 2-6, 7-6(8/6), 6-4 victory.

The win marked another impressive victory for the 20-year-old Landaluce, who eliminated Russian 14th seed Karen Khachanov.

Korda, who had beaten world number one Carlos Alcaraz in the previous round, had a match point late in the second set, but Landaluce survived to set up a quarter-final against Czech 21st seed Jiri Lehecka.

Landaluce, who had failed to register a single win at tour level in 2026 before arriving in Miami, dedicated his latest success to his late grandmother.

“She would have been 101 last week, and she passed away a few months ago. I wanted to give her the victory,” Landaluce said.

Lehecka booked his place in the quarter-finals by ousting sixth seed Taylor Fritz 6-4, 6-7(4/7), 6-2 in 2hr 25min.

“I just felt that in the third set, if I wanted to beat a guy like Taylor, I just needed to go for it and be aggressive,” Lehecka said.

American 22nd seed Tommy Paul set up a quarter-final against France’s Arthur Fils after cruising past Argentina’s Tomas Etcheverry 6-1, 6-3.

Fils beat Monaco’s Valentin Vacherot 6-4, 6-7 (4/7), 6-4.

Argentina’s 18th-seeded Francisco Cerundolo followed up his upset of Daniil Medvedev on Monday with a comfortable 6-4, 6-3 defeat of French 31st seed Ugo Humbert.

Cerundolo will face Alexander Zverev in the last eight after the German third seed defeated France’s Quentin Halys 7-6(7/4), 7-6(7/1).

MUCHOVA, GAUFF ADVANCE

In the women’s draw, Karolina Muchova needed all of her experience to hold off rising Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko 7-5, 7-6(7/5), booking a place in her first Miami Open semi-final after a match she admitted could have gone either way.

The 29-year-old Czech secured her fifth WTA 1000 semi-final berth in a hard-fought contest that lasted one hour and 47 minutes.

“It was very close, basically one point at the end. It can always change in tennis. I’m just very grateful I was able to win the last point,” Muchova said.

The win extends Muchova’s excellent run, having now reached the fourth round or better at all five tournaments she has played in 2026, including beating Mboko to claim the Doha title in February.

In Thursday’s semi-final, Muchova will face Coco Gauff after the American battled past Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic in three sets to take a 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 win.

With the win, world-number-four Gauff reached the semi-finals in Miami for the first time in her career, after failing to make it past the fourth round in her previous six attempts.

Published in Dawn, March 26th, 2026

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