U21 female volleyball athlete banned from competition: FIVB has not responded to Vietnam's complaint

Exactly one week has passed since the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) suddenly banned a Vietnamese athlete from competing at the U21 Women's Volleyball World Championship, and the matter has yet to be clarified.

Volleyball history has had some controversies about gender - Photo: PS

FIVB has not responded to Vietnam's complaint.

Speaking to Tuoi Tre Online on August 20, a leader of the Vietnam Volleyball Federation (VFV) said that VFV had responded to FIVB twice. One time was a complaint about a Vietnamese athlete who was deemed ineligible by VFV to participate in the 2025 U21 World Championship, leading to FIVB changing the competition results of the Vietnam U21. However, FIVB only said in general that the Vietnamese athlete was not eligible to compete in the women's tournament through a test.

So far, FIVB has not responded to this official complaint from VFV. It is known that the athletes of the Vietnam U21 team were tested for a gender-related index to determine whether they are eligible to participate in the women's tournament or not. According to VFV, only Vietnamese athletes have to do this test, and athletes from other countries do not have to do it.

For the second time, VFV emailed FIVB asking to provide VFV with FIVB's specific regulations for athletes participating in the 2025 Volleyball World Championship, which will take place from August 22 in Thailand. What conditions must athletes comply with, what tests must be done, and what parameters must they meet to be eligible to participate? With specific regulations, VFV will be able to prepare for athletes to meet the requirements set by FIVB, without being passive or disadvantaged.

This leader shared: "We sent an email to FIVB to ask what they require related to athletes participating in the World Championship, from there the federation can prepare best. They responded vaguely but did not clearly state what the athletes had to check. However, FIVB affirmed that they have the right to request checks without prior notice to member federations."

FIVB rules are vague

VFV leaders said that the U21 Vietnamese athlete had previously been tested for a gene-related sample. However, FIVB did not announce the specific results and only said that she was not qualified to compete in the women's tournament.

The FIVB's move is puzzling because their Sports Regulations are very vague about gender testing.

Specifically, this is a document that contains regulations on whether an athlete (or team) is eligible or not, including section 3.2 that mentions the issue of eligible gender. FIVB also established a department called the Gender Verification Committee.

However, the FIVB does not have any provision for random gender testing at international tournaments. The only regulation the world's leading volleyball body has is that it "has full authority to handle all issues and disputes related to the eligibility of athletes".

Previously, the FIVB had almost no precedent for gender testing at international tournaments. This is a highly controversial issue in the sports world, with a history of controversy spanning decades.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and World Athletics have been the two sports bodies that have most aggressively pursued gender testing. But after several controversial reforms, the IOC has now handed over the power to gender testing to sports federations.

World Athletics recently issued a new rule requiring all female athletes to undergo a single test for the SRY gene (male sex-determining gene), either through a dried blood sample or a cheek swab. If SRY is found to be positive, the athlete will be disqualified from the female category.

However, the FIVB has yet to make a similar announcement. Mr. Somporn Chaibangyang - President of the Volleyball Federation of Thailand recently said that the FIVB has "not really paid attention to this issue, and is currently only considering gender testing".

Bich Tuyen (10) withdrew from the 2025 World Championship because she felt that FIVB was not fair and did not respect athletes - Photo: TTO

Lack of transparency and fairness

VFV leaders said: Even in the doping test, national sports federations and athletes are informed about the banned substances; informed about the type of test they must perform to get that result. However, FIVB has not issued any regulations on what athletes participating in volleyball tournaments organized by FIVB will have to be tested for, through what method, and what specific standards.

Because there are no specific regulations, it causes many difficulties for athletes as well as member national federations. In case FIVB has tested, it must test everything. Designating an athlete from a certain country to do random tests creates suspicion and unfairness among participating countries.

Because of suspicions of unfairness and disrespect, athlete Bich Tuyen of the Vietnamese women's volleyball team withdrew from the 2025 World Championship. FIVB's actions hurt her and other athletes in similar situations.

"Whether an athlete is born male or female has been confirmed by medical authorities and the government based on their birth certificates and passports. When they grow up, the changes in their bodies are unknown to the athletes and they are not at fault. Now, a sports organization like FIVB tests an index and says that the athlete is not qualified to compete in a men's or women's tournament. Is that appropriate? If FIVB announces specific results, they will even be sued by athletes," a representative of the Vietnamese sports industry affirmed.

Regarding Bich Tuyen's withdrawal, VFV said it fully respects her decision. VFV leaders added: "That is a human right, an individual right, we cannot force or demand anything."

The VFV leader also shared the view that the athletes are not at fault. Some people are born with clearly female genitalia but carry male chromosomes. No one knows about these things, and the whole world is still arguing fiercely about this. This person cited scientific studies showing that not all male appearances mean an advantage. In fact, science has not been able to accurately conclude on this point of view.

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HUY DANG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/vu-vdv-u21-bong-chuyen-nu-bi-cam-thi-dau-fivb-chua-phan-hoi-khieu-nai-cua-viet-nam-20250820154958234.htm