Women's cycling team manager speaks out after trans athlete competes against females in major competition

Nicola Cranmer, the general manager of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) women's cycling team Virginia's Blue Ridge TWENTY28, provided a statement to OutKick after her riders recently competed in the Philadelphia Cycling Classic alongside a biological male trans athlete. The trans athlete did not finish.

Cranmer, who leads the longest running professional women's cycling team in the world, emphasized the importance of "protecting the integrity and fairness" in speaking out. 

"I have spent more than 20 years working in womens cycling and creating opportunities for female athletes, so I feel strongly about protecting the integrity and fairness of the womens category," Cranmer said.

"I believe eligibility should be determined by clear, consistent rules established by our sports governing bodies, particularly the UCI, and that those rules should be applied equally and transparently to every athlete.

"The UCI has established specific eligibility requirements for participation in the womens category, and I believe those regulations need to be respected if athletes are to have confidence in the fairness of their competition.

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"For this individual to compete raises legitimate questions about whether the process was consistent with current UCI policy and how those eligibility requirements were interpreted and applied.

"Respecting individuals starts with respecting the female category. Every athlete deserves to be treated with dignity and respect, and women deserve a protected competitive category in which they can race fairly, safely and with confidence."

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A race official who was there has provided a statement to OutKick addressing the situation.

"All riders were required to hold the appropriate international racing licenses, which officials cross-checked against UCI records before the event. Amanda Taits license and entry appeared valid, and nothing in the licensing information provided through USA Cycling identified Tait as male or otherwise indicated that Tait was ineligible to compete in the womens field. 

"Race officials have also been repeatedly instructed that eligibility determinations of this kind are the responsibility of USA Cycling, not individual officials working registration or the race, even though clear eligibility requirements are defined in the UCI regs.

"The womens race began at 8:35 Sunday morning. By the end of the first lap, officials phones began lighting up with messages from community members who recognized Tait on the broadcast and were questioning how Tait had been permitted to start in a UCI womens race. 

"Officials identified Tait in the peloton, but Tait was subsequently dropped from the field and removed under the races standard time-cut procedures before any separate eligibility action could be taken. 

"Event staff and teams we spoke with after the race were unaware of the eligibility issue until it was brought to their attention. 

"From the information available to officials at registration, there was no apparent failure by the local registration team. The licensing information presented to them by USAC indicated that Tait was cleared to race in a womens UCI event, and officials understood that eligibility decisions rested with USA Cycling."

The race was sanctioned by the UCI, while domestic licensing was handled by USA Cycling.

The trans athlete,