On Thursday, February 6, 2025, Donald Trump signed an executive order banning transgender women athletes from competing in women’s sports. The move aims to prevent individuals biologically assigned male at birth from participating in female sports events, including those at schools. The order, titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” calls for immediate enforcement against schools and athletic associations that fail to provide single-sex sports and changing rooms for women.
The signing coincided with National Girls and Women in Sports Day and marked a significant shift in the federal government’s stance toward transgender individuals under Trump’s administration.
In a statement before signing the order, Trump declared, “From now on, women’s sports will be only for women. We’ve gotten the woke lunacy out of our military, and now we’re getting it out of women’s sports.” He also spoke about the upcoming 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and the World Cup, stating that transgender athletes would not be allowed to compete. He added, “We’re not going to let it happen. In Los Angeles in 2028, my administration will not stand by and watch men beat and batter female athletes.”
Trump directed the Department of Homeland Security to deny visa applications from individuals “fraudulently” entering the U.S. as women athletes in an attempt to participate in sporting events like the Olympics.
The order authorizes the Department of Education to penalize schools that allow transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports. Schools found violating the policy could lose federal funding.
While the transgender population in the U.S. is small, the Trump administration has already signed three executive orders targeting transgender rights, including military participation and access to gender-affirming care. The president’s first order called for the federal government to recognize only two genders, male and female, a pledge made during his campaign to “keep men out of women’s sports” and end what he referred to as “transgender insanity.”
Critics argue the order affects more than just elite athletes, highlighting its potential impact on young transgender children. Olivia Hunt, director of federal policy at Advocates for Trans Equality, told Sky News, “We’re basically saying to these children that we don’t think it’s vital for them to learn the same skills as their peers in sports. We are setting them aside, treating them differently, and allowing them to be bullied.”
Despite the controversy, Trump’s executive order is part of a series of measures enacted early in his presidency, with several of his actions facing challenges in court. It remains unclear whether this order will face legal hurdles, particularly regarding how it aligns with Title IX, the civil rights law that prevents sex-based discrimination in education and federally funded activities.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the order, stating that it “upholds the promise of Title IX.”
Cheryl Cooky, a professor at Purdue University who specializes in the intersection of gender, sports, media, and culture, called the order a “solution looking for a problem.”
