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FILE – Azerbaijan’s gymnastics team competes in the 5-ball final event during the 36th European Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships in Kiev on November 28, 2020 (Photo by Sergei SUPINSKY / AFP)
The Swedish Gymnastics Federation said on Monday it would let teens decide for themselves what gender they want to participate in in the sport, both for practice and for competitions.
The decision was made after the federation “delved into the issue of gender identity and gender expression” over the summer, the organization said.
“Specifically, for our training and competition activities, the decision means that you can train in any group you choose regardless of your legal gender, gender identity or expression,” the federation said in a statement.
Transgender teens would also be free to compete in whatever class they choose, up to the junior national level, which is between 13 and 18 years old depending on the discipline.
Speaking to the Dagens Nyheter newspaper, the organization said the new rules would not apply to senior athletes as they would have to adapt to international rules.
The gymnastics federation is the first national sports body to heed a call from the Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Intersex Rights (RFSL), which in October published a report on transgender people in sports. , focused on children and young people.
According to RFSL, transgender youth felt left out in many sports and the rights group said other sports bodies were preparing to adopt new guidelines to be more “inclusive,” including the soccer association and the skating association.
The gymnastics federation said the issue had been on the agenda for a while, but also added that there hadn’t been a lot of inquiries from individuals or groups, which was “one of the reasons the issue had been in focus.”
“The reason we haven’t gotten a lot of questions about this is probably because we’ve had a system / structure that has led people to choose to quit smoking early, as they haven’t felt there is room for them and therefore therefore, the problem never came to us, “said Pelle Malmborg, secretary general of the federation, in a statement.
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