Winston & Strawn Secures Victory for Gender Equality in Sports

NEW YORK, NY — In a significant achievement for gender equality in sports, the Winston & Strawn LLP sports litigation team reached an agreement with USA Track and Field, Inc. (USATF) on behalf of champion race walker Erin Taylor-Talcott. The national governing body, which previously awarded race walk prize money in the 50K only to male competitors, will now award equal prize money to all competitors in future USATF race walk events regardless of gender. As part of the agreement, USATF will also award Ms. Taylor-Talcott prize money from the 50K Race Walk Championship last year where she finished first among all female competitors and second only to the first-place male competitor. 

Additionally, USATF has agreed to advocate for the participation of female competitors in 50K race walks at the international level, which are currently reserved only for male competitors. USATF will recommend to the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) that the 50K race walk be a mixed-gender event until a women’s event is established at that distance.

Ms. Taylor-Talcott, 36, won her first junior national championship as a teenager and has since medaled in distances ranging from 1,500 meters to 50 kilometers. She participated in the 2012 Olympic trials, but was informed that she could not enter the men’s-only 50K race walk during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London even if she secured a qualifying time. Ms. Taylor-Talcott faced a similar barrier this year when she earned a qualifying time in the 50K race walk, but was not permitted to compete in that event at the World Race Walking Cup because IAAF only conducts races for men at that distance. At the time, she was only able to compete in the 20K event.

“I want to thank USATF for agreeing to resolve this the right way and agreeing to advocate for equality in women's sports going forward,” said Ms. Taylor-Talcott. “This gives a powerful voice to myself and all women who have been treated unfairly. This is not only a victory for 50K walkers, but for women’s rights in general.” 

Winston & Strawn attorneys, including New York partners Jeffrey Kessler and David Feher, and associates Timothy Nevius, Jennifer Stewart, Jonathan Amoona, Joseph Litman, Rebecca Seif, and Isabelle Mercier, represented Ms. Taylor-Talcott on a pro-bono basis in her efforts to advance gender equality in sports.