A new policy suggested by the RFU means that there could be an assessment by a coach to see whether transgender women who weigh over 90 kg (14st 2lb) or are over 170cm (5ft 7in) tall may pose a safety risk to the other players before playing rugby for England. This is not only set to be put in place to protect players but also to ensure fairness and equality in the sport. There is frequently going to be differences between transgender and cis women’s biology, as many transgender women will have been through male puberty they will be likely to have experienced more muscle development and be generally taller. This makes it important to regulate participation to ensure equality and safety in women’s rugby.
However, the RFU stops short of following world rugby in banning transgender women, which is incredibly positive as it is completely unfair and wrong to prevent transgender women from participating in women’s rugby as a whole.
As part of the review process, the RFU has opened the external consultation period which will run until 5pm on 16 April 2021. I encourage anyone who wishes to learn more about the consultation to read the proposed policy in full and complete the survey on the RFU website.
Written by Pippa Seager
Artwork by Zara Masood
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