Having just been appointed to the highest office in world sport on March 20, Kirsty Coventry is expected to address many issues: the organization of the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, the choice of venue for the 2036 Olympic Games, questions about the evolution of the Winter Olympic Games in light of the climate crisis, etc. But the theme on which she has already spoken so far is none other than the question of the inclusion (or non-inclusion) of transgender athletes in international competitions. In this regard, the Zimbabwean stated, before the IOC General Assembly, her wish to prohibit any transgender woman from participating in all women's events. My remarks will attempt to show that, without a clear, harmonized, fair, and equitable policy, such a generalized exclusion can only lead to unjustified discrimination in international top-level sport. Yet the issue is a burning topic in the context of the organization of the next Olympic Games in Los Angeles. I will take the gamble of illustrating my remarks with a discipline to which…
International Sports Law
Keeping the Flame Alive? IOC Elections and their Impact on Global Governance
The Olympic Movement has recently experienced its own Habemus papam moment. After a 12-year mandate, Thomas Bach announced his intention to step down from his position as President of the International Olympic Committee (‘IOC’) this year. Much has been made of the secrecy and lobbying that accompanies the election and creates resemblances with the papal conclave. Coupled…
States’ International Obligation(s) to Repeal Domestic Legislations Incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights
On 22 October 2024 the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR or ‘the Court’) issued a landmark judgment in the case of Kobaliya and Others v. Russia. It found that the Russian legislation on ‘foreign agents’ – imposing huge restrictions on the rights of Russian non-governmental organisations, media organisations and individuals designated as ‘foreign agents’ – breached…
Why the ECtHR’s Grand Chamber should rule on the independence and impartiality of the Court of Arbitration for Sport in its Semenya judgment
As we await the upcoming judgment from the Grand Chamber (GC) of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in the Semenya v. Switzerland case, among the various issues at hand, one question seems to be interesting from a legal point of view, despite its absence from the judgment of the Chamber: the issue of the independence and…
Olympics 2024: The litmus test for the future role of international sport in times of war
As the Moscow Times reports, ‘only 16 Russians and 17 Belarusians have accepted invitations to compete under a neutral banner at the Paris Olympics’. While this may sound like a deliberate decision, the reality is that the ‘Individual Neutral Athlete Eligibility Review Panel’ (INAERP), appointed by the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Executive…