The NCAA will no longer allow men in women’s sports.
One day after President Donald Trump issued an executive order to ban men from women’s sports, the NCAA announced the end of its former policy that allowed men who called themselves transgender to compete in some women’s sports, according to ESPN.
The change is effective immediately.
“We strongly believe that clear, consistent, and uniform eligibility standards would best serve today’s student-athletes instead of a patchwork of conflicting state laws and court decisions,” NCAA president Charlie Baker said. “To that end, President Trump’s order provides a clear, national standard.
“This national standard brings much needed clarity as we modernize college sports for today’s student-athletes,” he said.
“The NCAA Board of Governors is reviewing the executive order and will take necessary steps to align NCAA policy in the coming days, subject to further guidance from the administration. The Association will continue to help foster welcoming environments on campuses for all student-athletes. We stand ready to assist schools as they look for ways to support any student-athletes affected by changes in the policy,” Baker said, according to Fox News.
Former Kentucky swimmer and activist Riley Gaines, who began fighting for women after the NCAA allowed Lia Thomas — a man saying he was transgender — to compete in the 2022 national championships, celebrated and challenged the NCAA to go even further.
About time.
Now they can work on stripping all records, titles, and honors from men who stole from deserving women. https://t.co/CMjope15vL
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) February 6, 2025
The NCAA acted on the heels of the Trump administration’s announcement that it would investigate potential civil rights violations at San Jose State University, the University of Pennsylvania, and the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association over transgender individuals playing on women’s teams, according to ESPN.
Sia Liilii, captain of the Nevada volleyball team that refused to play San Jose State because San Jose has a transgender player on the team, said she was “ecstatic” about the NCAA bowing to Trump.
I wish I could’ve told the girl in this photo what was to come in 2025. She felt cheated, betrayed, and violated.
I’m just glad that girl trusted God and took a leap of faith by stating the obvious when it wasn’t popular. It was true then, and it’s true now. He’s a man. pic.twitter.com/OtVbJfvKCl
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) February 6, 2025
“Women have fought long and hard for equal athletic opportunities,” Liilii said. “By completely removing men from women’s sports, we are moving back to the true definition of Title [IX]. Women are given an opportunity to champion their own sports division and shine on a fair competition floor,” she said.
Trump’s executive order said that the nation needed one fair standard.
“Many sport-specific governing bodies have no official position or requirements regarding trans-identifying athletes. Others allow men to compete in women’s categories if these men reduce the testosterone in their bodies below certain levels or provide documentation of “sincerely held” gender identity. These policies are unfair to female athletes and do not protect female safety,” the order said.
The order said that “it is the policy of the United States to rescind all funds from educational programs that deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities, which results in the endangerment, humiliation, and silencing of women and girls and deprives them of privacy.”
“It shall also be the policy of the United States to oppose male competitive participation in women’s sports more broadly, as a matter of safety, fairness, dignity, and truth,” the order said.
The order noted that “many educational institutions and athletic associations have allowed men to compete in women’s sports. This is demeaning, unfair, and dangerous to women and girls, and denies women and girls the equal opportunity to participate and excel in competitive sports.”
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