World chess federation bars transgender women from competing in women's events

FIDE: World's top chess federation rules transgender women can't compete in official events for females until gender change assessment made; policy may need to evolve in future.

The world's top chess federation has ruled that transgender women cannot compete in its official events for females until an assessment of gender change is made by its officials.

The decision by Switzerland-based federation FIDE was published on Monday and has drawn criticism from advocacy groups and supporters of transgender rights.

FIDE said it and its member federations increasingly have received recognition requests from players who identify as transgender, and that the participation of transgender women would depend on an analysis of individual cases that could take up to two years.

“Change of gender is a change that has a significant impact on a player’s status and future eligibility to tournaments, therefore it can only be made if there is a relevant proof of the change provided,” the federation said.

“In the event that the gender was changed from a male to a female the player has no right to participate in official FIDE events for women until further FIDE’s decision is made,” it said.

Holders of women's titles who change their genders to male would see those titles abolished, the federation said, while holding out the possibility of a reinstatement if the person changes the gender back to a woman.

“If a player has changed the gender from a man into a woman, all the previous titles remain eligible,” the federation said.