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Study finds no physical advantage for trans women in sport

cultureSep 9, 202621220

A meta-analysis published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, led by an eight-researcher team in Brazil, reviewed 52 prior studies and data from 2,943 trans women and 2,309 trans men alongside 568 cis women and 665 cis men. The authors found that after a year or more of hormone therapy trans women’s overall performance generally matched cis women in key fitness metrics such as upper and lower body strength and maximal oxygen consumption, though trans women retained higher absolute lean mass. Co-author Bruno Gualano told El País the results “refute the logic behind blanket bans on transgender women in sports,” noting those bans rest on assumptions the data do not support. The analysis flagged significant gaps: most source studies followed participants only a few years, focused on adults, and offered little evidence about elite-level trans athletes because so few compete at that level. The study also found trans men showed intermediate strength and body composition measures between cis men and cis women after several years of hormone therapy. The paper follows a 2024 IOC-funded study with similar findings, even as the IOC under president Kirsty Coventry is considering new restrictions and renewed sex testing, and as U.S. federal policy debates continue following a Trump administration executive order targeting schools that allow trans women and girls to play in women’s sports.

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