After decades of striving to gain recognition solely on the merit of their athletic ability, women are once again confronting gender-based issues in sports. The executive board of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) recently announced a new set of conditions concerning competition by athletes who have undergone sexual reassignment (a.k.a. a sex-change operation), putting women back in the spotlight.

The May 17th ruling stipulated that those who have undergone sex changes (gonadectomy) prior to puberty would be regarded as the altered gender. Additionally, the IOC's decision dictated that those who have changed gender may not compete until two years after gonadectomy.

U.S. Snowboard Team Manager Mike Jankowski looks at the topic from a different perspective, addressing the existence of medical necessity for gender reassignment. "Sometimes gender-determining chromosomes are not fully developed at birth," he explains, "and a ruling like the one made by the IOC could give such individuals a chance to compete."

In such cases, gender reassignment should be regarded as a biological necessity and not elective surgery. Jankowski did, however, acknowledge that the decision could potentially impact all sports at some level. "Society is changing," he added. "The IOC has made a proactive decision and has dealt with the issue in the fairest way possible."

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