The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) will start requiring one-time, mandatory gene-testing for all players to determine their biological sex.
It will also be a requirement to compete at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
According to ESPN, the WTA updated its women’s eligibility policy to include gender screening “based on biological sex.”
The policy is to “preserve the integrity of women’s professional tennis and maintain fair competition conditions for all players.”
The Women’s Tennis Association is introducing one-off mandatory gene-testing for all players effective from Tuesday, a requirement to compete at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
The updated women’s eligibility policy includes gender screening “based on biological sex to preserve… pic.twitter.com/OmWuFy7IYn
— espnW (@espnW) July 21, 2026
ESPN shared further:
The new policy takes the organization in line with the eligibility policy introduced by the International Olympic Committee in March to align with U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive order on sports ahead of the 2028 Games.
The WTA is complying with what is effectively an order from the IOC that Olympic sports bodies are following, though it remained unclear how many, if any, transgender women are competing at the Games level.
Players are to be tested for the SRY gene, a segment of DNA typically found on the Y chromosome that initiates male sex development in utero and indicates the presence of testes.
“In this policy, ‘biological male’ means an individual who, regardless of their legal sex or gender identity, has an SRY gene and therefore has or previously had testes or streak testes; and ‘biological female’ means an individual who, regardless of their legal sex or gender identity, has no SRY gene and therefore has or previously had ovaries or streak ovaries.”
The WTA said the policy distinguishes between biological sex and gender identity, and that there is “no intent to disrespect or question the gender identity or the dignity of any person.”
“Since first being introduced in 1975, the eligibility policy has undergone periodic review in light of developments across international sport,” the governing body said, according to BBC.
“Following the most recent review, which included consultation with WTA members and evolving standards across women’s sport, the WTA board approved an updated WTA women’s eligibility policy beginning in 2026 based on biological sex,” it continued.
“The WTA recognises that this is a sensitive and complex issue and is committed to treating all players with dignity and implementing the policy in a respectful and thoughtful way,” it added.
Women’s Tennis Association adopts SRY gene testing for ‘equal athletic’ competition https://t.co/dsH3zzPos4 pic.twitter.com/RI7oIW7QGk
— New York Post (@nypost) July 20, 2026
BBC has more:
The policy change comes a year after World Athletics announced new regulations – brought into effect in September 2025 – requiring athletes wanting to compete in the female category for world ranking competitions to take a one-time gene test.
World Boxing also approved the use of the SRY test in May 2025 when it introduced mandatory sex testing for all athletes wanting to compete in the women’s category.