Victory for Female Cyclists!

Here at IWN, we’ve worked hard to advocate on behalf of female athletes, not only for fairness but for safety and equality as well. These efforts have not gone unnoticed and the voices in this community are making a difference.

Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the world governing body for sports cycling, recently announced its decision to ban biological men from competing against women. As IWF reports:

“The rule change comes just weeks after IWF, its grassroots arm Independent Women’s Network (IWN), and the Inga Thompson Foundation rallied for ‘Our Bodies, Our Sports’ on the ground in Knoxville, Tennessee, where a biological male competed in the USA Cycling Women’s Pro Road National Championship.”

Many of our members were active with daily protest meetups along the course routes and participated in a rally and press conference as well.

IWN also led an open petition to UCI And USA Cycling to establish rules to distinguish between the sexes to give women cyclists a fair chance on the road. 

More from IWF:

“UCI said its decision followed a meeting with athletes and scientific, legal, and human rights experts who concluded that scientific knowledge cannot guarantee any physical advantage would be eliminated after undergoing hormone therapy.”

This calls for a celebration! Thank you for all your hard work and dedication, friends.