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It was a day in Olympic history.
After the International Olympic Committee updated its policies aimed at preventing biological males from competing in women’s sports, several Olympians have come forward to give their reaction to the change.
Several Olympians, including gold medalists, shared their thoughts on the new policy with PK Press Club Digital.
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Kaillie Humphries, three-time Olympic gold medalist in women’s bobsleigh for the United States and Canada
Kaillie Humphries, a bronze medal-winning American Olympic bobsled athlete, presents the Order of Ikkos to President Donald Trump during a Women’s History Month event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, March 12, 2026. (Al Drago/Bloomberg)
“Today is a great day for women’s sports and a great victory in the Olympic world. By implementing gender testing, it will allow for fair competition. This was happening years ago, and by bringing it back, it will protect the women’s category. I think it is very appropriate that LA28 is the game that will protect women’s sports, because it is something that our president has stood for,” Humphries told PK Press Club Digital.
Donna de Varona, American swimmer triple Olympic gold medalist
President Ronald Reagan with Donna De Varona as they address the Women’s Sports Foundation. (Getty Images)
“With the election of Christie Coventry and Olympic champion and her decision to appoint another woman to lead the medical commission. It was instructive that the IOC decided to go out and reach out to researchers to base their opinion on science and fairness. And it’s the right decision,” de Varona told PK Press Club Digital.
“This decision was based on science and research. I mean, I fundamentally think everyone should have an opportunity in sports, but in the Olympic arena, it’s a zero-sum game.”
MyKayla Skinner, American gymnast who won silver at Tokyo 2020
MyKayla Skinner of the United States poses with the silver medal after the women’s vault final at the Ariake Gymnastics Center during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games on August 1, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
“The best news! It’s about time!” Skinner told PK Press Club Digital.
Katie Uhlaender, American skeleton athlete, five-time Olympian
Katie Uhlaender of the United States competes in the women’s skeleton race during the 2025 IBSF World Championships at Mount Van Hoevenberg on March 7, 2025, in Lake Placid, NY (Al Bello/Getty Images)
“This is huge for women’s sports. For years, female athletes have asked for clarity, consistency and fairness in competition. No politics. No ambiguity. Just clear standards that protect the integrity of the category we train in our entire lives. Sports only works when the rules are applied consistently and athletes can trust them,” Uhlaender told PK Press Club Digital.
“Progress doesn’t come from avoiding difficult conversations, you have to approach them with courage. Thank you to everyone who helped make this happen, who protected women’s sport.”
Tyler Clary, American swimmer who won gold at London 2012
American swimmer Tyler Clary celebrates his gold medal during the men’s 200 meter backstroke final at the London 2012 Olympic Games, August 2, 2012, in London. (Christophe Simon/AFP)
“This is a long overdue return to common sense, and the IOC deserves credit for taking a clear position. At the elite level, fairness matters – and protecting the women’s category based on biological reality is essential to preserving it,” Clary told PK Press Club Digital.
“As an Olympian, I have not dedicated my life to competing on a playing field that is manipulated, tilted, and disguised as inclusion. Women’s sport exists because biological differences matter: the strength, power and muscles developed during male puberty are not erased, and pretending otherwise erases us. Fairness is not controversial. Let little girls dream of gold – don’t allow those dreams to be lost or tarnished. »
Maciej Czyzowicz, Polish pentathlete and gold medalist at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics
Maciej Czyżowicz, Polish gold medalist at the Pentathalon (Courtesy of Maciej Czyzowicz)
“Better late than never. This decision by the IOC is a big step in the right direction. After all, it has long been known that you cannot change your sex and that if someone is born a man, even if he starts wearing women’s clothes, he will still be a man. In addition, there are significant differences between the two sexes in terms of strength and speed, which puts female athletes at a disadvantage from the start,” Czyzowicz told PK Press Club Digital.
“So it’s absolutely clear that it wouldn’t be fair for biological men to compete in the women’s category. Additionally, in some sports it just wouldn’t be safe. I think this decision protects women’s sports, including preventing transgender athletes from competing against biological women.”
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Inga Thompson, American women’s cyclist, three-time Olympian
“If men are allowed to compete in women’s sports, over time women won’t even have the opportunity to compete at the Olympic level. You will have two categories in the Olympics. DSD/trans and the men’s category. The sex tests have worked great and have been non-intrusive. A simple oral cheek swab once in your life,” Thompson told PK Press Club Digital.
Nancy Hogshead, three-time American Olympic gold medalist swimmer
Nancy Hogshead, Olympic gold medalist (Courtesy of XX-XY Athletics)
“Playing sport is a human right. Today’s IOC announcement affirms this principle of inclusion and diversity. All athletes must compete in their category: their weight, their age, their ability category and now, their gender category. On behalf of women in sport, thank you for your leadership, IOC,” Hogshead said in a statement.
Martina Navratilova, women’s tennis legend and Olympian in Athens in 2004
Former Czech tennis player Martina Navratilova receives the golden racket during the Italian tennis internationals at the Foro Italico in Rome, Italy, May 21, 2023. (Massimo Insabato/Archivio Massimo Insabato/Portfolio Mondadori via Getty Images)
“Good news today from the IOC. People who adopt different gender identities, such as transgender, gender nonconforming or others, should enjoy the same human rights as other citizens and be protected from discrimination, provided that no rights based on sex are compromised,” Navratilova said in a statement.
“This is what the gay, lesbian and bisexual community has fought for decades. Today’s decision by the IOC recognizes that in Olympic sports, sex matters and that women’s sex-based rights must take precedence over gender-based identities.”
Giddeon Massie, American men’s cyclist, two-time Olympian
“There really isn’t much to praise in the IOC’s agonizingly slow decision. It should always have been the simplest, most fundamental logical conclusion, based unequivocally on God’s design for man and woman,” Massie told PK Press Club Digital.
“Our female Olympic and Paralympic athletes work too hard to have their dreams of success shattered by a man’s illusion of reality. Unfortunately, the battlegrounds remain vast among grassroots and recreational sporting arenas and these must continue to be contested for the sake of young women everywhere, now and in the future.”
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Carrie Englert Zimmerman, American women’s gymnast in Montreal 1976
“Finally, the International Olympic Committee showed courage and chose fairness over fear. As an Olympian, I have not dedicated my life to competing on a playing field that is manipulated, tilted, and disguised as inclusion,” Zimmerman told PK Press Club Digital.
“Women’s sports exist because biological differences matter: the strength, power and muscles developed during male puberty are not erased, and pretending otherwise erases us. Fairness is not controversial. Let little girls dream of gold – let’s not allow those dreams to be lost or tarnished.”
