Critics have argued that the current self-ID policy has allowed transgender women to “smash” female records in Parkrun events.

The controversy has heightened after it was reported that one transgender woman has finished first in approximately 60 Parkrun events – even beating a former British Olympian.

The attack occurred after a dispute erupted over Jeska’s eligibility to compete as a female athlete despite being born male.

Yamaguchi told The Times that, given that women are defined by their biological sex, it was “unfair against women and girls” for Parkrun to allow males in the female category.

Director of Sex Matters Fiona McAnena said: “It’s never been ‘inclusive’ to allow male runners to claim women’s places and records. Now Parkrun has no excuse to continue to discriminate against women by letting men register as female.”

Parkrun currently allows participants to self-identify their gender as “male”, “female”, “non-binary” or “prefer not to say”.

Previously, a Parkrun spokesman said that the event was not a race or athletic competition overseen by national or international federations.

The organisation believed it would not be “appropriate or practical” to request proof of gender or “adjudicate the validity of a person’s gender identity”.

Meanwhile, UK Athletics has already moved to ban transgender women from competing in female categories after guidance concluded it could not balance fairness with safety.

The decision came after determining that the inclusion of transgender women in female events could not adequately address both fairness and safety concerns.