Noa-Lynn van Leuven said Thursday she had been “retired” against her will after the Darts Regulation Authority passed a new policy barring biological males from women’s competitions. In an Instagram video, the Dutch darts player said she was “no longer allowed to compete” after years spent trying to reach the top level.
“I’ve worked so damn hard for years just to get here,” van Leuven said. “I showed up, I competed. I respected the sport every game, every single day. And now, with just one decision, I’m being told I don’t belong anymore.”
The DRA said Thursday that it had begun a review of its policies in 2025, commissioned a report from an academic developmental biologist who has published several papers on sex and categories in sport, and taken extensive legal advice before deciding it was satisfied that only biological females should be eligible for women’s tournaments regulated by DRA rules. Van Leuven had competed in the Women’s Series of the Professional Darts Corporation before the change, and in 2024 became the first transgender player to play at the PDC World Darts Championship women’s competition.
Van Leuven said the decision went beyond her own career. “This isn’t just about me,” she said. “This is another huge hit for the trans community.” She added that “this isn’t the end,” saying she was “just going back to the drawing board” and “not done fighting.”
The ruling gives the darts world a clear line for women’s events going forward, but it also puts van Leuven at the center of a fight that has moved from the oche into the broader debate over who gets to compete in women’s sport. For now, she is the athlete most visibly carrying the blow and the challenge to it.
