US President Donald Trump will sign an executive order today banning transgender athletes from participating in women's sports, fulfilling a promise that was at the centre of his election campaign 2024.
According to a White House document on the upcoming executive order obtained by ABC News, dubbed “No Men in Women’s Sports”, the order will change how the administration interprets Title IX, a civil rights law that addresses sex discrimination at schools that receive federal funding, including in athletics.
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What have people to say?
Deputy assistant to the president and senior policy strategist May Mailman told ABC News, "We want to take actions to affirmatively protect women's sports." She said that the executive order is designed to further overturn Biden-era policies that required schools and athletic organisations to treat gender identity and sex as equivalent.
She noted that a court ruling determined such requirements were not necessary and that the president's executive order would explicitly ban them.
Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said in a statement on Tuesday that Trump's executive order will lead to increased discrimination and harassment.
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"This order could expose young people to harassment and discrimination, emboldening people to question the gender of kids who don't fit a narrow view of how they're supposed to dress or look," Robinson said. "Participating in sports is about learning the values of teamwork, dedication, and perseverance. And for so many students, sports are about finding somewhere to belong. We should want that for all kids—not partisan policies that make life harder for them."
What else changes will the order make?
The executive order is set to make significant changes to various policies. The Secretary of State will be pushing for changes within the International Olympic Committee to maintain single-sex competitions.
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Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security will review visa policies to prevent transgender women from identifying as female, which would allow them to compete in women's sports.
Private sporting bodies will also be required to attend an in-person White House meeting, where they will hear accounts from female athletes firsthand.
(With inputs from agencies)