France's Sports Minister Marina Ferrari leaves after the weekly cabinet meeting at The Elysée Presidential Palace in Paris on March 25, 2026. LUDOVIC MARIN / AFP
France said on Friday, March 27, it was "greatly concerned" about the International Olympic Committee's decision to re-introduce gender testing to determine eligibility for the female category, saying it was a "backward step."
"We oppose a generalisation of genetic testing, which raises numerous ethical, legal, and medical questions, particularly in light of French legislation" which does not allow such tests, Sports Minister Marina Ferrari said in a statement.
The IOC announced on Thursday that only "biological females" will be allowed to compete in women's events, preventing transgender women from competing. It is re-introducing gender testing from the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics onwards in a move which will also rule out many athletes with differences in sexual development (DSD), previously known as intersex athletes.
Ferrari said the new IOC policy "defines the female sex without taking into consideration the biological specificities of intersex people whose sexual characteristics present natural variations, which leads to a reductive and potentially stigmatising approach."
