History was made in Tokyo this week as more publicly out LGBTQ competitors took part in the World Athletics Championships than ever before. The 20th edition of the championships — the most prestigious event in track and field outside of the Olympics — began on Saturday, September 13, and runs through September 21. More than 2,200 athletes from 198 countries are competing. According to Outsports, at least 13 of those athletes are publicly out as LGBTQ. That matched the tally recorded on the site’s “Team LGBTQ” list for last year’s Paris Olympics. Of that group, eight returned to action in Tokyo.
At the last championships in Budapest in 2023, Outsports tracked nine out athletes, including American sprint star Sha’Carri Richardson, who captured gold in the 100 meters, and Spain’s Maria Perez, who claimed double gold in race walking. Both women lined up again in Tokyo to defend their titles. Richardson was one of three Team USA athletes on the LGBTQ roster, tying the United States with Brazil for the most out athletes competing.
Another American, hurdler Trey Cunningham, appeared on the entry list but was known to be an alternate. While the Olympics have leaned into celebrating LGBTQ visibility in recent years, World Athletics has not followed suit. The federation has faced criticism for restrictive policies, including banning trans women from women’s events and enforcing limits on athletes with differences of sex development. Tokyo 2025 also marked the first championships where all athletes in female categories were required to pass an SRY gene test to compete. The list of out athletes came from Outsports.com, where fans can find more details.
