LONDON (AP) — Transgender athletes who have had sex change operations will be eligible to compete in the Olympics for the first time under new rules being finalized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Last month, the IOC heard from medical experts who agreed that transgender athletes should be allowed to compete in their corrected sexuality and will announce its official policy on the subject in the next few weeks.

“We will have no discrimination,” IOC medical director Patrick Schamasch told Associated Press. “The IOC will respect human rights.”

Details are still being worked out, but Schamasch said transsexual athletes would be eligible a certain amount of time after their sex-change surgery.

“The trend is to have an ineligibility period,” he said. “Then, after certain conditions have been fulfilled, the athlete will be able to compete in his or her new sex.”

Schamasch said officials wanted to make sure any side effects of hormone therapy had worn off. He did not know whether there were any transsexual athletes in line to compete in next summer’s Athens Games, but noted several sports federations had asked the IOC for guidance.

The rule covers both male-to-female and female-to-male cases.

Some contend male-to-female transsexuals have a physical advantage against other women. Men have higher levels of testosterone and greater muscle-to-fat ratio and heart and lung capacity.

However, doctors say testosterone levels and muscle mass drop after hormone therapy and sex-change surgery.

Until 1999, the IOC conducted gender verification tests at the Olympics, but the controversial screenings were dropped before the 2000 Sydney Games when it was realized that not all women have standard female chromosomes. In addition, there are cases of people who have ambiguous genitalia or other congenital conditions.

One of the most famous examples in Olympic history was Stella Walsh, who won gold in the 100 meters at the 1932 Games and silver in 1936. She was found to have male genitals and both male and female chromosomes upon her death in 1980.

“The eligibility of transsexuals to participate needs to be clarified and dealt with,” said Arne Ljungqvist, the IOC medical commission chairman.

More recently, Canada’s Michelle Dumaresq made news competing as a mountain bike racer. Formerly Michael, Dumaresq had sex reassignment surgery in 1996 and competed for Canada at last year’s World Championships in Austria. She finished 24th in the downhill discipline.