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It was a day in Olympic history.
After the International Olympic Committee updated its policies to prevent biological males from competing in women’s sports, several Olympic athletes have come forward to give their reactions to the change.
Several Olympic athletes, including gold medalists, have shared their thoughts on the new policy with Pak Gazette Digital.
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Kaillie Humphries, women’s bobsled athlete with three Olympic gold medals for the US and Canada
U.S. Olympic bronze medalist bobsled athlete Kaillie Humphries presents the Order of Ikkos to U.S. President Donald Trump during a Women’s History Month event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, U.S., Thursday, March 12, 2026. Each year, March is designated Women’s History Month by presidential proclamation. (Al Drago/Bloomberg)
“Today is a great day for women’s sports and a great victory in the Olympic world. By implementing sex testing, it will allow for fair competition. It used to happen years ago, and bringing it back will protect the women’s category. I think it is very appropriate that LA28 is the games to protect women’s sports, as it is something our president has advocated for,” Humphries told Pak Gazette Digital.
Donna de Varona, female swimmer with three Olympic gold medals for the USA.
President Ronald Reagan with Donna De Varona as they address the Women’s Sports Foundation. (Getty Images)
“With the election of Christie Coventry and Olympic champion and her decision to appoint another woman to head the medical commission, it was informative that the IOC decided to go out and reach out to researchers to base this opinion on science and justice. And it is the right decision,” de Varona told Pak Gazette Digital. “Actually, this decision was based on science and research. I mean, basically I think everyone should have a chance in sport, but at the Olympic level, it’s a zero-sum game.”
MyKayla Skinner, American gymnast, silver medalist at Tokyo 2020
Team USA’s Mykayla Skinner poses with the silver medal after the women’s vault final on the ninth day of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Ariake Gymnastics Center on August 1, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
“The best news! It’s about time!” Skinner told Pak Gazette Digital.
Katie Uhlaender, American skeleton athlete, five-time Olympian
Katie Uhlaender of the USA competes during heat three of the Women’s Skeleton Race on Day 2 of the 2025 IBSF World Championships at Mt. Van Hoevenberg on March 7, 2025, in Lake Placid, New York. (Al Bello/Getty Images)
“This is huge for women’s sport. For years, athletes have asked for clarity, consistency and fairness in competition. Not politics. Not ambiguity. Just clear standards that protect the integrity of the category we train our entire lives to compete for. Sport only works when the rules are applied consistently and athletes can trust them,” Uhlaender told Pak Gazette Digital.
“Progress doesn’t come from avoiding difficult conversations, but from addressing them bravely. Thank you to everyone who helped make this happen, who protected women’s sport.”
Tyler Clary, American swimmer, gold medalist at London 2012
American swimmer Tyler Clary celebrates winning gold in the men’s 200m backstroke final at the London 2012 Olympic Games on August 2, 2012, in London. (CHRISTOPHE SIMÓN / AFP)
“This is a long overdue return to common sense, and the IOC deserves credit for taking a clear stance. At the elite level, justice matters, and protecting the female category based on biological reality is essential to preserving it,” Clary told Pak Gazette Digital.
“As an Olympian, I did not dedicate my life to competing on a playing field that is rigged, tilted and disguised as inclusion. Women’s sport exists because biological differences matter: the strength, power and muscles developed during male puberty are not erased, and pretending otherwise erases us. Equity is not controversial. Let’s let girls dream of gold, let’s not let those dreams be lost or tarnished.”
Maciej Czyzowicz, Olympic gold medal pentathlete from Poland in Barcelona 1992
Poland Maciej Czyzowicz, gold medalist in the Pentathlon (Courtesy of Maciej Czyzowicz)
“Better late than never. This IOC decision is a big step in the right direction. After all, it has been known for a long time that you cannot change your sex, and if someone is born a man, even if he starts wearing women’s clothing, he will still be a man. Furthermore, there are significant differences between the two sexes in terms of strength and speed, which puts female athletes at a disadvantage from the start,” Czyzowicz told Pak Gazette Digital.
“Therefore, it is absolutely clear that it would not be fair for biological men to compete in the women’s category. Additionally, in some sports it simply would not be safe. I believe this decision protects women’s sports, specifically by preventing transgender athletes from competing against biological women.”
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Inga Thompson, American women’s cyclist, three-time Olympian
“If men are allowed to compete in women’s sports, over time, women will no longer have opportunities to even compete at the Olympic level. There will be two categories at the Olympics. DSD/trans and the men’s category. The sex tests worked very well and were not intrusive. A simple oral swab once in a lifetime,” Thompson told Pak Gazette Digital.
Nancy Hogshead, three-time US Olympic gold medalist swimmer
Olympic gold medalist Nancy Hogshead (Courtesy of XX-XY Athletics)
“Playing sport is a human right. Today’s announcement from the IOC affirms that principle of inclusion and diversity. All athletes must compete in their category; their weight, age, skill category and, now, their sex category. On behalf of women in sport, thank you for your leadership, IOC,” Hogshead said in a statement.
Martina Navratilova, legend of women’s tennis and Olympian in Athens 2004
Former Czech tennis player Martina Navratilova receives the golden racket during the international Italian tennis matches at the Foro Italico. Rome (Italy), May 21, 2023. (Massimo Insabato/Archivio Massimo Insabato/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images)
“Welcome today’s news from the IOC. People who adopt different gender identities, such as transgender, gender non-conforming or others, should receive the same human rights as other citizens and be protected from discrimination, as long as no rights based on sex are compromised,” Navratilova said in a statement.
“It is what the gay, lesbian and bisexual community fought for for decades. Today’s decision by the IOC recognizes that in Olympic sports, sexual issues and women’s rights based on sex must take priority over identities based on gender.”
Giddeon Massie, American male cyclist, two-time Olympian
“There is really little to praise for the IOC’s woefully slow decision. It should always have been a very simple and basic logical conclusion that is unequivocally founded in God’s design for man and woman,” Massie told Pak Gazette Digital.
“Our Olympic and Paralympic athletes work too hard to have their dreams of achievement undermined by one man’s self-deception of reality. Unfortunately, the battlegrounds remain vast between recreational and grassroots sporting fields and must continue to be contested for the sake of young women everywhere, now and in the future.”
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Carrie Englert Zimmerman, American gymnast in Montreal 1976
“Finally, the International Olympic Committee showed some guts and chose justice over fear. As an Olympian, I did not dedicate my life to competing on a playing field that was rigged, tilted and disguised as inclusion,” Zimmerman told Pak Gazette Digital.
“Women’s sport exists because biological differences matter: the strength, power and muscles developed during male puberty are not erased, and pretending otherwise erases us. Equity is not controversial. Let’s let girls dream of gold, let’s not let those dreams be lost or tarnished.”
