Van Leuven Says She Was Retired by DRA Ban — Not by Choice
Noa-Lynn van Leuven didn’t decide to stop. She was stopped.
The 29-year-old Dutch darts player announced her retirement from women’s events on April 9 after the Darts Regulation Authority ruled that women’s tournaments would be restricted to biological females only — effective April 2026. Van Leuven, who began competing in women’s darts in 2022 six years after her transition, found out by email.
“I just got an email,” she said. “Apparently I just got retired. Not by choice but because I am no longer allowed to compete.”
She was not done there. “I’ve worked so damn hard for years just to get here. And now, with just one decision, I don’t belong anymore.”
The career she built was real. Six PDC Women’s Series titles. A historic appearance at the 2024 PDC World Championship — the first openly transgender woman to compete there. None of that disappears. But the door to women’s competition is closed.
The DRA policy was shaped by developmental biologist Emma Hilton’s report and recent court rulings. Controversially, two Dutch players had already walked away from their national team in 2024 over her inclusion.
Van Leuven will remain eligible for open PDC events, including the World Championship. She says she intends to compete there.
“I’m not done fighting,” she said. On the inside, she admitted, it was a different story.