The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) has decided to not allow transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports categories.
This issue has sparked a lot of debate in recent months. Keep reading to learn more about this decision.
The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) has officially banned transgender athletes from participating in women’s sports.
On Monday, the committee made changes to their Athlete Safety Policy on their website, with the document being dated from the previous month.
Even though the update was provided by them, the USOPC didn’t make it public, and it states that trans athletes will not be allowed to take part in women’s sports. “The USOPC will keep working with different groups that have oversight roles, like the IOC, IPC, and NGBs, to make sure that women can compete in a fair and safe environment, following Executive Order 14201 and the Ted Stevens Olympic & Amateur Sports Act,” it says.
In February of this year, President Donald Trump signed Executive Order 14201, which was called, ‘Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.’
The policy states that letting trans athletes compete in women’s categories is “demeaning, unfair, and dangerous” and takes away cis-women and girls’ “equal chance to participate and succeed in competitive sports.”
“It will also be the policy of the United States to oppose male participation in women’s sports more generally, for reasons of safety, fairness, dignity, and truth,” the order continued.
However, it is still unclear if this policy will be put into action before the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
So far, no athletes have earned an Olympic medal while competing as openly trans in a women’s sports category.
USOPC CEO Sarah Hirshland and USOPC President Gene Sykes confirmed the change in the policy.
“As a federally chartered organization, we must follow federal expectations,” they wrote in a letter that was shared with the media.
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