Donald Trump signs executive order banning transgender female athletes from competing in women’s sports

1. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order that will prevent people assigned male at birth from competing in women’s sporting events. The order was signed at an afternoon ceremony on Wednesday.

According to ABC News, the White House will likely expect sports bodies, such as the NCAA, to change their rules to coincide with the executive order.

If colleges and universities don’t abide by the order, the White House stated the schools could lose federal funding as well as face legal action. The executive order also wants sweeping changes within the International Olympic Committee to maintain same-sex competition in athletics events.

The executive order will also advise private sporting bodies to attend an in-person meeting at the White House to hear accounts from female athletes, according to the document. This comes after Trump also signed an executive order last week that was looking to restrict gender-affirming care for anyone under the age of 19.

Upon being inaugurated last month, Trump put out an order that called for the federal government to define United States citizens by only male or female. Those genders would be reflected on official government documents, such as passports.

According to a survey conducted by the Associated Press, over half of the voters surveyed believed there was too much support for transgender rights in society.

During Trump’s campaign leading up to the election, the 78-year-old vowed to put an end to the “transgender insanity,” but didn’t offer any details on how he would achieve that.

Trump happened to sign the executive order on National Girls and Women in Sports Day. The order will be how the administration views Title IX, the law known for helping athletes gain gender equity and prevent sexual harassment on high school and college campuses.

Each presidential administration holds the authority to interpret Title IX as it sees fit. In April 2024, the Biden administration ruled that the Title IX stipulations state the rights of LGBTQ+ students are protected under federal law, as well as provided protection for victims of sexual assault on campuses. More than a half-dozen Republican states opposed the Biden administration’s ruling in court.