Noa-Lynn van Leuven announces she has been 'retired' by new rules against transgender players

Noa-Lynn van Leuven says she has been "retired" after the Darts Regulation Authority (DRA) ruled that transgender women will no longer be permitted to compete in women’s events.

On Thursday afternoon, the DRA, who are the governing body for professional darts, published new guidelines for open and women’s tournaments following a review of its Trans and Gender Diverse Policy.

They announced that as of Thursday (April 9), only biological women are permitted to enter DRA-regulated women’s tournaments, including the PDC Women’s Series, where she has won six titles across the previous two seasons.

"As a result of its review, the DRA is satisfied that to achieve fair competition in darts, only biological females should be eligible to compete in women’s tournaments regulated by DRA Rules," a statement read.

Van Leuven, who made her debut at the 2022 PDC Women's Series after passing stringent transitioning tests to play in women's darts, reacted to the news in a video on her Instagram account.

"I just got an email. Apparently I just got retired. Not by choice, but because I'm no longer allowed to compete," she said.

"The DRA just decided that trans women are no longer allowed in women's events, which basically means I'm out. I've worked so damn hard for years just to get here.

"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.

"This isn't just about me. This is another huge hit for the trans community, especially after recent decisions made by the IOC. Every day it's getting harder and harder for trans people just to exist, to compete."

Van Leuven added: "If you think this stops with me, it doesn't. We just want to be."

PDC issue statement on DRA eligibility update as they mention report from Dr Emma Hilton

A statement on the PDC's official website has addressed the DRA's review, which included commissioning a report from Dr Emma Hilton, an academic developmental biologist who has published several papers on sex and categories in sport."

You can read the statement in full below:

"The DRA has issued a new Eligibility Policy and Rules for open and women’s tournaments, effective from April 9th 2026.

"The DRA began a review of its Trans and Gender Diverse Policy in 2025, which included commissioning a report from Dr Emma Hilton, an academic developmental biologist who has published several papers on sex and categories in sport.

"The DRA has also considered extensive legal advice. This review also took into consideration the judgement of the UK Supreme Court on April 16 2025 in the For Women Scotland case and the subsequent case of Harriet Haynes and the English Blackball Pool Federation in August 2025.

"Relevant key findings by Dr Hilton are appended below, concluding: “that multiple, small-magnitude sex differences accumulate to generate male advantage over females in darts,” leading to her expert scientific opinion that “darts is a “gender-affected sport” within Section 195 of the Equality Act (2010).

"As a result of its review, the DRA is satisfied that to achieve fair competition in darts, only biological females should be eligible to compete in women’s tournaments regulated by DRA Rules.

"Accordingly, effective from April 5 2026, the DRA has replaced its Trans and Gender Diverse Policy with an Eligibility Policy and Rules for open and women's tournaments, which will now be in operation across affiliated organisations, including the PDC.

"The DRA has consulted with the PDC and PDPA in developing this new Policy and Rules.

"The DRA seeks to be inclusive and all players – irrespective of their biological sex, legal sex, and/or gender identity – may compete in open tournaments and are encouraged to do so.

"The DRA will continue to monitor developments in relation to transgender participation in sport and will review the Eligibility Policy in light of these and at least annually."

Appendix 1

Key Points from Dr Hilton’s report

▪ Various evidence streams indicate that females are unable to consistently compete with male players in darts. Whilst the performance gap is likely related to a number of relevant social factors, there are also several physical characteristics that provide males with an advantage over female players.

▪ Male advantage includes greater height, longer limbs, broader shoulders, more muscle mass, and stiffer tendons. These factors enhance reach, stability and throwing mechanics, affecting consistency and precision.

▪ Stance and throw. A combination of larger skeleton and advantageous biomechanics that maximise reach and more effective exploitation of forward lean contributes to an advantage for males in throwing mechanics and accuracy.

▪ Grip and motor control. Greater hand and arm strength delay fatigue of key muscles involved in release timing, supporting sustained scoring consistency in male players.

▪ Conclusion. This report has identified multiple physical differences that, in my opinion, contribute to superior scoring among male darts players. I do not consider that any individual sex difference is overwhelming in magnitude and therefore deterministic for performance. Rather, multiple, smallmagnitude sex differences accumulate to generate male advantage over females in darts.

"It is Dr Hilton's expert opinion that darts is a “gender-affected sport” within Section 195 of the Equality Act (2010)."

What have other darts players said about Van Leuven?

Back in November 2024, Van Leuven became the first transgender player to compete in the Grand Slam of Darts, where she lost 5-0 to Michael van Gerwen.

After the match ended, Van Gerwen defended his compatriot.

“She had a lot of c**p over the last few yers. Some people have to be a bit nice to her. Bullying is probably one of the worst things in the world," he said.

“But unfortunately that’s the world we live in. I don’t understand why people are bothering so much. There’s worse things in life to worry about.”

Luke Humphries also commented on Van Leuven's situation, adding: "She is in the competition. She has not broken any rules. She is doing what she is allowed to do. I can't say that she is doing anything wrong.

"I don't really know, it's a hard one, because there are so many different opinions that get thrown around.

"It would be nice if people let her get on with it and play. But, yeah, I wish her all the best. Hopefully she gets a win and it's good for her."

Back in April 2024, Fallon Sherrock admitted that "the room was divided" at a Women's Series event held that month, adding that she repeatedly checked on Van Leuven's wellbeing during the event.

"You could definitely tell the room was divided there," she told Online Darts. "I'll be honest, it wasn't a great atmosphere to be in.

"I actually went over to Noa a few times, just said 'Are you ok? Just keep going, don't let the haters win'. I sent her messages, made sure she was alright. Because that's what you've got to do, pick someone up.

"All this negativity, I got it, but she's getting it 100 times worse. If I can help her, I'd feel better and she should feel better and ignore everyone, just play how she can."

Sherrock added: "I think it was always going to come out, but I think the way it's been done has been absolutely appalling.

"I think there are ways of doing it, and people have gone completely the wrong ways about it. It's turned nasty, and it should never have turned nasty."