Big Win for Women’s Sports as US Olympic and Paralympic Committees Ban Males [WATCH]

The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) confirmed a new policy this week stating that only biological females will be permitted to compete in women’s Olympic athletics.

The announcement marks a significant change from the committee’s previous stance, which allowed individual sports federations to determine eligibility criteria.

Under the former system, some organizations permitted male athletes to participate in women’s categories if they met specified testosterone thresholds.

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The USOPC’s updated position comes ahead of the 2028 Summer Olympics, which will be hosted in Los Angeles.

Five new sports are set to be introduced at those games: cricket, flag football, lacrosse, squash, and the return of baseball and softball.

A formal statement released by the USOPC on Tuesday outlined the revised policy.

“The USOPC is committed to protecting opportunities for athletes participating in sport. 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, 36 U.S.C §22501, et. seq.”

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In confirming the policy shift, the USOPC said it had held “a series of respectful and constructive conversations with federal officials” and acknowledged, “As a federally chartered organization, we have an obligation to comply with federal expectations.”

President Donald Trump has consistently criticized the inclusion of biological males in female athletic competitions.

During his presidency, he signed an executive order titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” which rescinded an earlier Biden-era directive that reinterpreted Title IX to include gender identity as a protected class.

Biden’s executive order had mandated that all federal agencies develop strategies to be more inclusive of transgender individuals.

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Under that framework, the Department of Education directed schools to permit males who identify as female to access women’s restrooms, locker rooms, and sports teams.

Trump’s executive order reversed that approach. It instructed the Department of Education to “take all appropriate action to affirmatively protect all-female athletic opportunities and all-female locker rooms and thereby provide equal opportunity guaranteed by Title IX,” a statute originally enacted in 1972 to ensure gender equality in education and athletics.

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, appointed under Biden, enforced the reinterpretation of Title IX, requiring public schools to permit biological males to access female facilities and participate in girls’ sports.

The directive generated backlash from parents, athletes, and educators who argued that the policy was unfair and detrimental to female athletes.

In recent Olympic competitions, male athletes have participated in women’s events under existing eligibility rules. New Zealand’s Laurel Hubbard, a biological male, competed in the women’s weightlifting category at the Tokyo Olympics.

Though Hubbard did not place, his inclusion prevented other female athletes from participating.

In another instance, Algeria’s Imane Khelif, a male athlete, competed in women’s wrestling.

After it was revealed that Khelif is male and not transgender, Algerian officials requested that the medals be returned.

Khelif was reported to have a medical condition that results in some female characteristics.

Athletes who are biologically female but identify as transgender or non-binary have continued to compete in women’s events.

Both the United States and Canada have sent such athletes to the Olympics as members of women’s teams.

In February, President Trump announced that his administration would deny visas to any transgender athlete intending to compete in the women’s category at the 2028 US-hosted Olympics.

That policy has prompted lawsuits from California and other states challenging the administration’s position.

These states have supported the continued inclusion of transgender-identified males in women’s athletic events.

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