Jamaine Punzalan

Article (news)

Deutsche Welle

<p>The <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/sports/othersports/2026/7/6/osaka-beats-world-number-one-sabalenka-in-wimbledon-last-16-1015">world number one women&#x27;s tennis player </a>supports the WTA&#x27;s new sex testing rules. Others are more critical of the policy.</p><p>&quot;I think it&#x27;s really important to keep the fairness in our tour,&quot; said Sabalenka on Monday. &quot;Obviously, biologically, men are way stronger than women, so I feel like it would not be really fair for a woman to compete against a biological man.</p><p>&quot;I believe it took them a little while to make this decision and I support it,&quot; the Belarussian continued. &quot;If they want to test us all, I&#x27;m happy to do that; it&#x27;s pretty fair, and let&#x27;s keep it that way.&quot;</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/sports/othersports/2026/5/8/sabalenka-hopes-to-compete-under-belarus-flag-after-ioc-ruling-0811">Sabalenka hopes to compete under Belarus flag after IOC ruling </a></div><div><strong>WTA introduces genetic testing</strong></div><p>In July 2026, the WTA (Women&#x27;s Tennis Association) introduced a one-time, mandatory genetic test for all players. As part of the protocol, players will be tested for the SRY gene, a segment of DNA typically found on the Y chromosome. The test can be conducted by a cheek swab or a blood test.</p><p>The new policy also includes a document players must sign highlighting disciplinary action is possible if testing is refused.</p><p>The previous WTA policy allowed transgender women to compete if their testosterone levels had been lowered to below 2.5 nmol/L continuously for the previous two years. There are no known transgender women currently playing on the WTA Tour.</p><p>Sabalenka is currently the best female tennis player in the world, and has been ranked number 1 for 92 consecutive weeks, so her endorsement carries a lot of weight. </p><p>On top of that, she competed in the modern edition of Battle of the Sexes in Dubai in 2025 — a match she lost to Nick Kyrgios, a male Australian player. While billed as a way to generate interest in tennis, some were critical of the match-up.</p><p>World Boxing introduced it in May 2025 after a lengthy and controversial debate around gold medal winner Imane Khelif at the 2024 Paris Olympics.</p><p>World Athletics did similarly in September 2025. Then, in the decision likely to have the most far-reaching impacts, the International Olympic Committee updated their guidelines in early 2026.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/sports/othersports/2026/3/31/caster-semenya-to-lead-fight-against-ioc-s-gene-screening-policy-for-female-athletes-1428">Caster Semenya to lead fight against IOC&#x27;s gene-screening policy for female athletes </a></div><div><strong>How has this new policy been received?</strong></div><p>Trans athletes have long been politicized.</p><p>Riley Gaines, a former swimmer at the US collegiate level, has become a conservative political activist who is known for campaigning against the participation of trans women in women&#x27;s sports. Recently, Gaines was seen supporting WNBA star Sophie Cunningham, who had said in an ESPN feature that &quot;biological men&quot; should not compete in female sports in order to protect young girls.</p><p>Maria Jose Martinez-Patino, whose personal experience with gender verification dramatically impacted sporting policy on the matter in the 1980s, believes new genetic testing for women at elite level is &quot;a setback of several decades.&quot;</p><p>&quot;It takes me back to the 1950s and 1960s, when women practically had to go through a series of controls, had to undress in front of a panel of doctors,&quot; Martinez-Patino told DW in an interview in 2025. &quot;I get the impression that we haven&#x27;t advanced from a scientific point of view. We&#x27;ve made practically no progress if it&#x27;s now categorically said that women with X and Y chromosomes are not women.&quot;</p><p>World Athletics argues that the SRY gene — present in people with a Y chromosome, usually men — &quot;is a reliable indicator for determining biological sex.&quot; Martinez-Patino believes, though, that determining someone&#x27;s sex is not as simple as that.</p><p>&quot;It&#x27;s not black or white. There are more than 60 genetic mutations which I think are not all that complicated to study. Something that I&#x27;ve always said is that it should be done case by case,&quot; the Spanish former hurdler said.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/sports/othersports/2026/6/30/us-supreme-court-upholds-state-bans-on-transgender-athletes-in-school-2351">US Supreme Court upholds state bans on transgender athletes in school</a></div><div><em>Edited by: Matt Pearson</em></div><div><em><a href="https://www.dw.com/en/tennis-star-sabalenka-supports-sports-new-sex-test-policy/a-78228069?maca=en-VAS_ENG_ABS-CBN_Langtext-42381-xml-media"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1774855555426dw-dark-blue-4c_page-0001.jpg" style="width:69px !important;height:50px" class="fr-fic fr-dib fr-fil"/></a></em></div>

<p>The world number one women's tennis player supports the WTA's new sex testing rules. Others are more critical of the policy.</p>

The world number one women's tennis player supports the WTA's new sex testing rules. Others are more critical of the policy.

Tennis star Sabalenka supports sport's new sex test policy

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Tennis star Sabalenka supports sport's new sex test policy

Deutsche Welle

Published August 05, 2026 09:53 AM PHT

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