BBC names player withdrawn from tournament over high
testosterone as Women’s Footballer of the Year
Zambia admitted after the 2021 Tokyo Olympics that Banda’s testosterone
levels exceeded Confederation of African Football requirements
A Zambian player who was withdrawn from a 2022 tournament after failing to
meet gender eligibility rules has been named BBC Women’s Footballer of the
Year.
Barbra Banda, who scored a hat-trick at the Paris Olympics and has become
the second-highest scorer in the United States’ National Women’s Soccer
League this season, won the award from a five-player shortlist including
Spain’s Aitana Bonmati, winner of the female Ballon d’Or. Banda, a striker,
received the most votes from BBC readers after being shortlisted by a panel
of what the BBC said were “experts involved in football” including coaches
players and non-BBC journalists.
“All players had to undergo gender verification, a CAF [Confederation of
African Football] requirement, and unfortunately she did not meet the criteria
set by CAF.” Telegraph Sport established last year that Banda had never
undergone a test and was de-selected for the competition as a pre-emptive
measure.
Before turning to football Banda competed as a professional boxer, winning
all five bouts.
Olympian Sharron Davies, a staunch advocate for women’s safety in sport,
said on X: “It’s so sad the BBC are actively encouraging the destruction &
loss of opportunities for female athletes in sport. I’m so disheartened &
disappointed they are actively cheering this unfairness on.”
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football...-testosterone/