New Zealand has not selected its squad for the Olympics in Tokyo, but the country has eased its qualification criteria as a result of the corona pandemic and Laurel Hubbard seems to be able to qualify.
The country's Olympic Committee writes that it is "very likely" that they will send a number of weightlifters including Hubbard.
Previously competed as a man
Hubbard was born in a male body, but changed gender to a woman in her 30s.
She previously competed as a man, but was allowed to start competing with the ladies after she showed sufficiently low testosterone levels.
The 43-year-old aims to participate in the + 87-kilo class where she is currently ranked 16th in the world.
The New Zealand Olympic Committee writes that everyone who is selected for the Olympics can count on their full support.
"New Zealand's law has a strong culture of caring, inclusion and respect for everything," they wrote in a statement.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) allows transgender people to compete as long as testosterone levels are low enough, below 10 nanomoles per liter.
That criterion is met by Hubbard.
Tried to stop her
The Australian Weightlifting Federation has previously tried to stop her from competing with the argument that the physique she developed as before the gender change gives her an advantage.
"The current criterion and how it is used risks devaluing women's weightlifting and discouraging female-born athletes from investing in the sport at the elite level in the future," they write in a statement.