Irish Examiner view: Rights of transgender athletes still a contentious issue

Floodgates have opened and it's difficult to see them closing any time soon

Megan Rapinoe at the Women's World Cup quarter final between France and the United States at the Parc des Princes, in Paris, in June 2019. Picture: AP Photo/Francisco Seco

The floodgates have been opened on one of the most contentious issues in sport and society — the rights of transgender athletes to compete in competitive women’s sport — by decisions taken by governing bodies in cycling and international swimming.

And it is very difficult to see them being closed again any time soon. In fact, the floodgates are likely to be replaced by the gates to the courts of law around the world.