London Marathon organisers are awaiting further guidance before making any decisions on the participation of transgender athletes, following last week’s Supreme Court ruling on the definition of "woman" and "sex".
Event director Hugh Brasher confirmed that the organisation will review detailed reports from the Equality and Human Rights Commission and Sport England before determining its next steps on this "complex" issue.
The Supreme Court ruling clarified that the terms "woman" and "sex" in the 2010 Equality Act refer to biological sex. This clarification has implications for various sports, including the London Marathon, and organisers are taking a considered approach before announcing any policy changes.
The ruling also stated that a section of the Act which permits the exclusion of athletes based on their sex from gender-affected sports was “plainly predicated on biological sex”.
More than 56,000 people are expected to take part in the 2025 event on Sunday, which could break the current record for finishers and will again raise millions of pounds for charity.
A non-binary gender option has been offered to ballot applicants for the mass participation element since 2023. Elite athlete races, as well as the championship and good for age categories, all operate under current World Athletics rules.
Brasher said: “The London Marathon been very clear about protecting women’s rights, that’s women from birth, women as defined by the court, in terms of competition, good for age, championship, elite athletes.
“We have to wait, as does everybody, for the detailed report to come out from the Equality and Human Rights Commission. It is said to be coming out in the summer and we will also wait for the report from Sport England as well.
“We don’t know what detail is going to come out (in the reports). We obviously will meet what the law says – but there has to be that detail coming out of that Commission and out of Sport England.”
Taking part in the mass event allows for self-selection of gender on the ballot. Applicants can use a passport for ID, which can state gender as different from that assigned at birth.
“This is complex,” Brasher said. “We are clear about what we have done and we are really clear about the competition element – anywhere where there is competition, and that includes good for age, has to be your biological birth sex.”
Brasher added a “considered decision” would be taken by event organisers once the detail is published.
He said: “We delight in being both inclusive, but also protecting in competition the rights of women, which is incredibly important. Lord Coe and World Athletics have always led on that and we absolutely look to continue doing that.”
