A British female darts player forfeited a quarterfinals tournament match after being slated to face a biological male.
Deta Hedman refused to continue playing in the Denmark Open over the weekend after she advanced to the quarterfinals, where she was pitted against Noa-Lynn van Leuven, a biological man who identifies as a woman. Hedman later denied rumors that she backed out of the competition because of illness.
“No fake illness I said I wouldn’t play a man in a ladies event,” Hedman posted on X, according to Fox News. “This subject causing much angst in the sport I love. People can be whoever they want in life but I don’t think biological born men should compete in Women’s sport.”
The British darts player declined to take any compensation over her decision to forfeit the tournament.
The World Darts Federation (WDF), which organized the Denmark Open, allows biological men to compete in women’s competitions if they “submit documentation from a medical practitioner that gender reassignment has been ongoing for at least one year,” according to WDF guidelines.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC), which sets the rules followed by the Darts Regulation Authority, sets the testosterone level of a transgender competitor wishing to compete against women at 10 nanomoles per liter for at least 12 months. The IOC also states that one cannot have changed his gender identity for at least four years prior.
