Latest news with #womens sports
Reuters
23-07-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
US Olympic & Paralympic Committee bars transgender women from competing in women's sports
July 22 (Reuters) - The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) has updated its policy to align with an executive order signed earlier this year by U.S. President Donald Trump barring transgender women from competing in women's sports. "The USOPC will continue to collaborate with various stakeholders with oversight responsibilities, e.g., IOC, IPC, NGBs, to ensure that women have a fair and safe competition environment consistent with Executive Order 14201 and the Ted Stevens Olympic & Amateur Sports Act," the USOPC said in an update to its Athlete Safety Policy. The USOPC did not respond to a request for comment on the change. USOPC President Gene Sykes and CEO Sarah Hirshland referenced Trump's executive order in a memo to the Team USA community sent out this week, ABC News reported, which said, "As a federally chartered organization, we have an obligation to comply with federal expectations." Trump signed the "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" order in February in a bid to exclude transgender girls and women from female sports, a directive that supporters said will restore fairness but critics argue it infringes on the rights of a tiny minority of athletes. The order directs the Department of Justice to make sure all government agencies enforce a ban on transgender girls and women from participating in female school sports under Trump's interpretation of Title IX, a law against sex discrimination in education. Trump's order goes beyond high school and college sports, calling for the U.S. government to deny visas for transgender females seeking to compete in the United States. Trump also said he would not allow transgender athletes to compete in the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028. The executive order instructed the State Department to pressure the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to change its policy, which allows trans athletes to compete under general guidance preventing any athlete from gaining an unfair advantage. The order is expected to affect only a small number of athletes. The president of the National Collegiate Athletics Association told a Senate panel in December he was aware of fewer than 10 transgender athletes among the 530,000 competing at 1,100 member schools.
The Guardian
23-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
US Olympics officials quietly bar trans women from competing in women's sports
The US Olympic and Paralympic committee has in effect barred transgender women from competing in women's sports, telling the federations overseeing swimming, athletics and other sports it has an 'obligation to comply' with an executive order issued by Donald Trump. The new policy, announced Monday with a quiet change on the USOPC's website and confirmed in a letter sent to national sport governing bodies, follows a similar step taken by the NCAA earlier this year. The USOPC change is noted obliquely as a detail under 'USOPC Athlete Safety Policy' and references the US president's executive order, Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports, signed in February. That order, among other things, threatens to 'rescind all funds' from organizations that allow trans athlete participation in women's sports. US Olympic officials told the national governing bodies they will need to follow suit, adding: 'The USOPC has engaged in a series of respectful and constructive conversations with federal officials' since Trump signed the order. 'As a federally chartered organization, we have an obligation to comply with federal expectations,' USOPC CEO Sarah Hirshland and president Gene Sykes wrote in a letter. 'Our revised policy emphasizes the importance of ensuring fair and safe competition environments for women. All National Governing Bodies are required to update their applicable policies in alignment.' The National Women's Law Center put out a statement condemning the move. 'By giving into the political demands, the USOPC is sacrificing the needs and safety of its own athletes,' said that organization's president and CEO, Fatima Goss Graves. The USOPC oversees about 50 national governing bodies, most of which play a role in everything from the grassroots to elite levels of their sports. That raises the possibility that rules might need to be changed at local sports clubs to retain their memberships in the NGBs. Some of those organizations – for instance, USA Track and Field – have long followed guidelines set by their own world federation. World Athletics is considering changes to its policies that would mostly fall in line with Trump's order. A USA Swimming spokesperson said the federation had been made aware of the USOPC's change and was consulting with the committee to figure out what changes it needs to make. USA Fencing changed its policy effective 1 August to allow only 'athletes who are of the female sex' in women's competition and opening men's events to 'all athletes not eligible for the women's category, including transgender women, transgender men, non-binary and intersex athletes and cisgender male athletes'. The nationwide battle over trans girls on girls' and women's sports teams has played out at both the state and federal levels as Republicans portray the issue as a fight for athletic fairness. More than two dozen states have enacted laws barring transgender women and girls from participating in certain sports competitions. Some policies have been blocked in court by those who say the policies are discriminatory, cruel and unnecessarily target a tiny niche of athletes. The NCAA changed its participation policy for trans athletes to limit competition in women's sports to athletes assigned female at birth. That change came a day after Trump signed the executive order intended to ban transgender athletes from girls' and women's sports. Female eligibility is a key issue for the International Olympic Committee under its new president, Kirsty Coventry, who has signaled an effort to 'protect the female category'. The IOC has allowed individual sports federations to set their own rules at the Olympics – and some have already taken steps on the topic. Stricter rules on transgender athletes – barring from women's events anyone who went through male puberty – have been passed by swimming, cycling and track and field. Soccer is reviewing its eligibility rules for women and could set limits on testosterone. Trump has said he wants the IOC to change everything 'having to do with this absolutely ridiculous subject'. Los Angeles will host the Summer Games in 2028.
The Independent
22-07-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
US Olympic and Paralympic officials bar transgender women from competing in Olympic women's sports
The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee has effectively barred transgender women from competing in women's sports, telling the federations overseeing swimming, athletics and other sports it has an 'obligation to comply' with an executive order issued by President Donald Trump. The change, announced Monday with a quiet change on the USOPC's website and confirmed in a letter sent to national governing bodies, follows a similar step taken by the NCAA earlier this year. The USOPC change is noted obliquely as a detail under 'USOPC Athlete Safety Policy' and reference's Trump's executive order, 'Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports,' signed in February. That order, among other things, threatens to 'rescind all funds' from organizations that allow transgender athlete participation in women's sports. The national governing bodies will likely follow the USOPC's directive.
