At their meeting last month, the IFF Central Board has approved the IFF Transgender Policy. This policy outlines the conditions of eligibility of transgender athletes in international floorball competitions. This policy applies only to international floorball competitions in which the eligibility of players falls under the direct jurisdiction of the International Floorball Federation (IFF). A full list of these events can be found in the policy document.
The inclusion of transgender athletes has proven to be an extremely challenging issue for sports, and how it is managed varies differently from one sport to the next. Conflicting medical and social opinions also complicates the discussion and implementation of policies. While we understand that the inclusion of transgender athletes in floorball in some countries may be very difficult, the IFF will encourage all National Associations to find some level of competition where everyone can be included, even if this is at just a community level or within social competitions.
We must all endeavour to continue to strive for Floorball being available for all.
The most important parameters used in developing the Transgender policy has been the determination of how inclusive the policy is for transgender athletes and how fair it is to all athletes involved in international competitions. This balance between upholding inclusivity without compromising fairness provides a conflict which is difficult to resolve. The International Floorball Federation (IFF) acknowledges that this policy, while providing inclusivity for some, will also rule others ineligible for international representation. However, the IFF recognises that at lower competitive levels of floorball, and especially at community floorball level, the possibility for a more inclusive policy may be possible.
National Floorball Federations are responsible for developing their own transgender policies for competitions under their jurisdiction, and the IFF will work with all its member countries to help them develop policies that offer the greatest level of inclusion possible, while still maintaining a level of fairness for all participants. National Floorball Federations are encouraged to apply the IFF policies when building their international representative teams and development pathways, to minimise the issues of athlete eligibility / ineligibility when submitting team lists for international competition. As in any selection process for players in teams that are the responsibility of a National Association, the eligibility of players must meet both the IFF and National Association rules. The eligibility rules of each association is up to their own boards to decide upon, however, the IFF would hope that as each association develops their own policies regarding transgender athletes that there will be a cohesiveness between the policies of the IFF and National Associations.
The policy document can be downloaded here
