{"id":11885,"date":"2026-07-20T20:59:32","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T15:59:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=11885"},"modified":"2026-07-20T20:59:32","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T15:59:32","slug":"wta-adopts-sry-gene-testing-for-competition-in-womens-professional-tennis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=11885","title":{"rendered":"WTA adopts SRY gene testing for competition in women&#8217;s professional tennis"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F2%2F2026%2F07%2Fcrop-40035403.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft wp-block-nypost-editor-partner-article-links\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>The Women\u2019s Tennis Association (WTA) has just become the latest sports organization to require players to take a genetic test to establish their eligibility to compete in the\u00a0women\u2019s category.<\/p>\n<p>The WTA\u2019s updated women\u2019s eligibility policy requires players to undergo a one-time\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/02\/06\/sports\/imane-khelif-opens-up-on-natural-male-gene-while-agreeing-to-undergo-testing-for-2028-olympics\/\">screening for the SRY gene<\/a>, which is found on the Y chromosome and is involved in male-typical sex development. Testing can be completed through a simple cheek swab, blood test or saliva sample.<\/p>\n<p>Players who test negative for the SRY gene will be immediately eligible to compete on the WTA Tour. A positive result will prompt further medical assessment before a player can be cleared.<\/p>\n<p>Players must also sign documentation acknowledging that refusing to undergo testing could result in disciplinary action.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>US Venus Williams during Women\u2019s 2nd Round match vs US Bethanie Mattek-Sands at the National Tennis Center in Flushing, NY on Sept 2, 2009. <span class=\"credit\">Sports Illustrated via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThe WTA\u2019s women\u2019s eligibility policy is designed to promote equal athletic opportunities in women\u2019s professional tennis and maintain fair competition for all players participating in WTA tournaments,\u201d\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/wtafiles.blob.core.windows.net\/pdf\/publications\/Women's%20Eligibility%20Policy%20w%20Exec%20Summary%20for%20Website%20(Final).pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the official policy\u00a0states<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The WTA said the policy was approved following consultation with its members and a review of evolving eligibility standards throughout international women\u2019s sports.<\/p>\n<p>The previous policy, last updated in 2024, <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/06\/30\/us-news\/supreme-court-upholds-state-bans-on-trans-female-athletes-in-girls-sports\/\">permitted transgender-identifying males to compete<\/a> with women if they maintained testosterone levels below 2.5 nmol\/L for at least two years. There are no known males currently competing on the WTA Tour.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>The new guidelines allow players who test negative for the SRY gene to be immediately eligible to compete on the WTA Tour. <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThe WTA recognizes that this is a sensitive and complex issue and is committed to treating all players with dignity and implementing the policy in a respectful and thoughtful way,\u201d the governing body said.<\/p>\n<p>The WTA joins a growing number of athletic organizations, including World Athletics and World Boxing, in implementing mandatory <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/03\/26\/us-news\/athletes-praise-olympics-transgender-competitors-ban\/\">SRY gene testing for athletes<\/a> seeking to compete in the women\u2019s category.<\/p>\n<p>The International Olympic Committee has also announced plans to use <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/03\/26\/sports\/ioc-bans-transgender-women-athletes-from-olympics-with-new-policy-on-female-eligibility\/\">sex testing for the\u00a02028 Los Angeles Olympics<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/05\/09\/sports\/martina-navratilova-blasts-gavin-newsom-over-california-trans-athlete-controversy\/\">Tennis legend Martina Navratilova<\/a> praised the WTA\u2019s decision as a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Martina\/status\/2078953316013179107\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cstep in the right direction\u201d<\/a>\u00a0on Sunday.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Japan\u2019s Naomi Osaka serving a ball during the women\u2019s singles quarter-final match of the WTA 500 Bad Homburg Open tennis tournament in Bad Homburg, Germany on June 25, 2026. <span class=\"credit\">AFP via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI played no part in this particular policy, but am very happy that we at the WTA are clear that we are a women\u2019s association and only women, as in females, can compete at the highest level of women\u2019s tennis,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Martina\/status\/2079127639118200868\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Navratilova\u00a0wrote on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The new policy goes into effect on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Women\u2019s Tennis Association (WTA) has just become the latest sports organization to require players to take a genetic test to establish their eligibility to compete in the\u00a0women\u2019s category. The WTA\u2019s updated women\u2019s eligibility policy requires players to undergo a one-time\u00a0screening for the SRY gene, which is found on the Y chromosome and is involved&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11886,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/07\/crop-40035403.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11885","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11885","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11885"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11885\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/11886"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11885"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11885"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11885"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}