Former Australian Diamonds captain Caitlin Bassett ‘not surprised’ by ban

Former Australian Diamonds netball captain Caitlin Bassett says she is ‘not surprised’ the World Netball move to ban transgender athletes from elite international women’s netball.

Caitlin Bassett during the Constellation Cup International Test match between the New Zealand Silver Ferns. Picture: Kai Schwoerer/Getty Images

Former Australian Diamonds captain Caitlin Bassett says she is “not surprised” by a World Netball move to ban transgender athletes from international competition, acknowledging the physical capacity male athletes have over their female counterparts.

The international governing body made the decision to let only females play in the interest of “fair competition” and “the safety of athletes”.

The newly released World Netball “participation and inclusion” policy stipulates that for athletes to be eligible for the international women’s teams they must be born female.

“Eligibility for international level women’s netball competition is restricted to those recorded as female at birth, irrespective of gender identity,” the policy states. “And transgender athletes who can establish to WN’s satisfaction that they have not experienced the biological effects of testosterone at any time.”

Bassett said she trained against men when she played and acknowledged the physical abilities of her male opponents. She said she was “not surprised” by World Netball’s reinforced policy on transgender athletes.

“Training with and against men in the lead up to major events like a Commonwealth Games or World Cup provided us with a challenge we couldn’t get playing against females,” Bassett said, who now commentates for Fox Netball.

“The physical capacity, strength and speed they possess helped us prepare physically and tactically.”

Australian players from right: Kim Jenner, Caitlin Bassett and Verity Charles. Picture: Peter Meecham/Getty Images

Bassett, whose career highlights included two netball World Cup victories and a Commonwealth Games gold medal, added she was excited to see the development in the men’s game, with increased competitions and opportunities for male athletes at the elite level.

“The growth of men’s netball is something that’s great to see as we push to meet the criteria to be considered for the Olympics [in Brisbane 2032],” Bassett said.

There are no transgender netballers playing in the Suncorp Super Netball competition.

The new policy relates only to international competition, and national governing bodies are able to “modify or even not apply these guidelines” to their domestic leagues.

“Following a detailed review of the science, and consultation with experts and members, it has determined that international women’s netball is a gender-affected activity and that a policy is required (to) ensure fairness and safety at this level of our sport,” World Netball said in a statement following the release of the policy.

“World Netball believes that the research on which it has relied is robust; it comprises many research studies, all of which have been published in peer-reviewed journals and come from multiple distinct research groups around the world.”

World Netball follows on from rowing, swimming, athletics, cycling and cricket in making a policy change that excludes trans athletes.

The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) adopted the same restrictions in the United States this week.

Last week NSW Swifts Super Netball shooter Samantha Wallace-Joseph apologised for a social media post she made about transgender people.

Wallace-Joseph said any offence she caused the LGBTQ+ community was unintentional.