The San Diego Velodrome in Balboa Park is back to hosting USA Cycling sanctioned races, but the return to official competition comes with a heavy catch for some of its most loyal riders. Under USA Cycling’s new eligibility rules, transgender women are barred from racing in women’s categories, leaving local trans cyclists who train at the track feeling blindsided and unsure how they can keep chasing upgrade points without risking disqualification.
What happened at the velodrome
According to KPBS, the San Diego Velodrome Association hosted a USA Cycling permitted race last Saturday, the first such event at the track in years. The race was run under USA Cycling’s eligibility rules, which now define who can and cannot line up in women’s fields.
SDVA board president Roger Ainslie told the outlet he wants transgender riders to feel welcome at the track, but said any disputes over who is allowed to enter women’s races fall under USA Cycling’s authority, not the Velodrome’s. That split between local culture and national policy is exactly what has riders worried.
USAC's rule change
USA Cycling has updated its transgender athlete policy so that the women’s category is based on sex assigned at birth, with the new standard set to take effect Sept. 15, 2025. The change removes the earlier hormone-based pathways used by many federations and means that any USA Cycling permitted event must follow the national governing body’s eligibility criteria. The policy is posted by USA Cycling.
Club nights vs. sanctioned upgrade races
The Velodrome is still running its in-house Women+ workouts and Friday night women’s fields, which it describes as inclusive and open to female-identifying and nonbinary racers. Those sessions are run under the track’s own guidelines, not USA Cycling’s.
USAC events, however, are a different story. They require a USA Cycling license and full compliance with the national policy. The April 4 USA Cycling event is listed as “USA Cycling Permitted” and includes a Women 4/5 category on the public registration page, highlighting how riders who sign up for upgrade points can find themselves caught between the Velodrome’s stated inclusion and USA Cycling’s rules. The event is listed on BikeReg, and the Women+ information is posted on the San Diego Velodrome site.
Permit language and potential liability
The San Diego Velodrome operates under a City of San Diego special use permit that explicitly requires the permit holder not to “discriminate or permit discrimination” and lists protected characteristics that include gender identity and gender expression. The permit is part of the city’s public agreement with the Velodrome and is included in the signed documents.
Legal experts told KPBS that if a trans woman is denied the chance to race in a women’s USA Cycling event at the track, she would likely have grounds to sue. California civil-rights guidance also specifically lists gender identity and gender expression as protected categories under state nondiscrimination law. The permit is available publicly through a document posted by KPBS, and state guidance can be accessed through California civil-rights resources.
Science and the fairness debate
Supporters of bans commonly cite competitive fairness, but the science they lean on is far from settled. A systematic review and meta-analysis in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, which pooled 52 studies, concluded that current evidence “does not support theories of inherent athletic advantages for transgender women” and found similar fitness measures in many studies after gender-affirming hormone therapy.
That body of research complicates blanket exclusions and is a key reason advocates argue that how policies are interpreted and enforced at the local level deserves close scrutiny.
Where things stand locally
Some trans riders who built their cycling community at the San Diego Velodrome now say they will steer clear of USA Cycling sanctioned events and instead stick to club nights and Women+ workouts where they feel they still belong.
Riders, advocates and legal counsel say they plan to press the city for clarity on how the permit’s nondiscrimination terms will be enforced and to watch closely whether additional sanctioned upgrade races go forward under the new rules. For cyclists who care about both safety and serious competition, the next stretch of the season will be a test of whether city, local and national policies can be reconciled without pushing out people who already see the track as home.
