Cycling BC, the provincial governing body for the sport of cycling, is pleased to formalize its policy on transgender athlete participation which strengthens the organization’s commitment to creating more inclusive, welcoming, and diverse spaces in sport by breaking down barriers to participation, including discrimination.
The Cycling BC Policy on Transgender Athlete Participation supports self-identification for all athletes of all genders, allowing an athlete to be able to choose their sex/gender on their race licence without restriction. The athlete may participate as their chosen sex/gender at all Cycling BC-sanctioned events.
“We’re deeply committed to making the sport of cycling more inclusive,” says Erin Waugh, Cycling BC’s Chief Executive Officer. “Being able to formalize our policy and put it in writing further cements our commitment to our members and to embracing the diversity that exists in our community.”
Athletes with a UCI race licence and racing in UCI-sanctioned events will continue to be required to satisfy current UCI policies on transgender athlete participation. The UCI, or Union Cycliste Internationale), is the international governing body for the sport of cycling and is responsible for regulating and overseeing major cycling events such as World Championships.
The Cycling BC Policy on Transgender Athlete Participation, while new in writing, has been carried out as a practice by Cycling BC for several years in instances where a member athlete identifies with a gender different than the one they were assigned at birth. The policy is in alignment with viaSport BC guidelines on trans athlete inclusion and current evidence-based research from the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport.
Since it is already being used as common practice by the organization, the new Cycling BC Policy on Transgender Athlete Participation will take effect immediately.
Cycling BC now joins several other provincial sport organizations in BC and across Canada that have developed their own transgender athlete participation policies, including the Saskatchewan Cycling Association, Basketball BC, Softball BC, BC Rugby, and Volleyball BC.
For more information, please view the Cycling BC Policy on Transgender Member Participation.