Kamal Ghorui
The International Olympic Committee made a big decision on March 26, and it quickly turned into a heated debate. The new rule says only biological females who pass an SRY gene test can compete in the women’s category at the Olympics. This rule will start from the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics and will not change past results. Soon after the announcement, former US soccer star Megan Rapinoe spoke strongly against it. She called the rule “horrible” and said it does not protect women. Her comments spread fast online. Then conservative podcaster Link Lauren reacted on social media, criticizing her take and supporting the new policy. What started as a sports rule quickly became a bigger public argument about fairness, identity, and women’s sports.
Megan Rapinoe questions IOC policy and calls SRY testing invasive and harmful
Megan Rapinoe shared her thoughts during the April 2 episode of the A Touch More podcast, which she co-hosts with Sue Bird. She said the episode was recorded on March 31, also known as Transgender Day of Visibility.Megan Rapinoe made it clear she disagrees with the IOC’s reasoning. She said, “It has nothing to do with protecting women.” According to her, the policy targets transgender athletes more than it supports fairness in sports.She also raised concerns about the SRY gene test. Rapinoe explained that biology is not always simple or clearly divided. She said, “We already know that biology… it’s not just one clean category.” She added that testing all women in this way feels invasive and unnecessary.Rapinoe went further and said the decision looks political. She claimed it reflects a wider campaign against transgender people, even though they make up a very small part of athletes in women’s sports. She called the rule “hateful” and said it was not needed.
Link Lauren backs IOC rule and criticizes Megan Rapinoe’s stance on women’s sports debate
Link Lauren responded on X (formerly Twitter) after seeing Rapinoe’s comments shared by Fox News. He strongly disagreed with her view.He wrote, “I swear the loudest feminist voices usually hate women. It’s a bizarre hypocrisy. She’s mad men have been barred from women’s sports.”Lauren has spoken about this topic before as well. On his March 31 podcast episode, he supported the IOC’s decision. He argued that many young female athletes work very hard for years.He said, “There are girls out there who get up at 4:00 a.m. They train. They work hard, and they’re losing out on scholarships and medals… because someone who wants to identify as a girl comes in and takes it from them.”Lauren believes biological differences between men and women matter in sports. That is why he sees the IOC rule as necessary to keep competition fair.
