The World Surf League (WSL) made a significant change in its policy when it announced that transgendered athletes would now be able to participate based on the new rules. The new policy says that trans-women who can prove that they have been a girl for the last 12 months, can participate with other women.
Trans-women will need to prove that their testosterone levels were less than five nmol/L for the last 1 year. The WSL has followed the same policy laid down by the International Surfing Association (ISA) in an effort to give transgendered athletes an opportunity to be a part of the WSL and compete.
Top Surfers Protest Against New WSL Policy
However, the new policy has not gone down well with a number of top surfers including Australian Kelly Slater and American Bethany Hamilton.
Hamilton has criticized the new policy and said that it made more sense for the WSL to form a new division for transgendered athletes and let them compete against each other to make things fair. Hamilton says if the WSL does not change its policy, she will drop out of the WSL, which will be a big blow for the WSL as Hamilton is considered the most inspirational surfer in the world.
