A cycling organizer announced a change to its gender classifications last week after a transgender cyclist recently won a Belgian Waffle Ride race.
In a press release on July 7, Monuments of Cycling, which owns the Belgian Waffle Ride, said that as of August 1 all races will be following a new gender classification policy.
"Female: In the interest of protecting the parity of sports between women and men, racers who were born female may compete in the classification," the release said. The announcement also states that the male category will allow individuals "who were born and/or identify as male may compete in this classification." In addition, there will be an open category, which is open to "all racers, regardless of gender identification, [who] may compete in this classification."
The announcement comes shortly after Austin Killips, a transgender woman cyclist, won a Belgian Waffle Ride race in North Carolina in May.
In a statement on Monday, Michael Marckx, founder of Monuments of Cycling, told Newsweek that "in keeping with our values and in response to feedback that we recently received from some cyclists after our most recent North Carolina race, we announced last Friday updates to our racing classification policies."
"Belgian Waffle Ride will not require proof of eligibility for racers competing in specific classifications before an event. We may require validation of eligibility of specific racers on a case-by-case basis if needed to ensure the integrity of each classification," the statement continued. "Racers can also request confirmation of eligibility verification of competitors by Belgian Waffle Ride via an anonymous process. We will take all such requests into consideration."
The statement also noted that an equal amount of prize money will be rewarded to the winners in each category.
Killips, 27, won the Belgian Waffle Ride racing event and defeated runner-up Paige Onweller by just over 4 minutes, Cyclingnews.com reported. Meanwhile, Killips' victory made her the first openly transgender woman cyclist to win an official Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) event, the New York Post reported last month.
According to Cyclingnews.com, Onweller spoke out about the race and "some controversy" as she was defeated by a transgender woman. In her remarks, Onweller mentioned the rule from cycling's governing body, the UCI, and how Killips is allowed in the race as a transgender woman.
"Additionally, underneath all helmets is a face and a person who deserves respect, dignity and a safe space to ride bikes," Onweller said. "In the future, I feel a separate category is appropriate but event promoters are also learning what is best to preserve both female cycling while also creating an inclusive space for all to ride. These things take both time and grace to resolve."
In May after Killips won a Tour of the Gila stage race in New Mexico, American cyclist Inga Thompson criticized the UCI rule that allows transgender women to compete in the female category of racing, prompting the governing body to issue a statement.
"The UCI acknowledges that transgender athletes may wish to compete in accordance with their gender identity," the UCI said, according to NBC News. "The UCI rules are based on the latest scientific knowledge and have been applied in a consistent manner. The UCI continues to follow the evolution of scientific findings and may change its rules in the future as scientific knowledge evolves."
Newsweek reached out to Killips via social media for comment.
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