Tag: Transgender Athletes

Georgia Senate Passes Bill Defending Women’s Sports

Debra McClure

The Georgia Senate passed a bill protecting women’s sports by 33 to 21 on Tuesday that would prevent biological males from unfairly competing in women’s and K-12 girls’ sports. The bill awaits transfer to the House for continued discussion.

HB 1104 seeks to safeguard “students from harm” and maintain “competitive fairness” in school sports by requiring athletes to compete in activities based on the gender listed on their birth certificate. The bill states that local schools may have “separate teams for members of each sex where selection for such teams is based upon competitive skill, competitive fairness,  student safety or the activity involved is a contact sport.”

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Girls’ Stand Against Trans Participation in Sports Sets Up 2024 Legal Battle

The Center Square

Four high school female track athletes in Connecticut have stood against the influx of transgender athletes seeking to compete against girls in school sports, likely setting up a defining legal battle of 2024.

The U.S. Court of Appeals rescued the legal challenge, Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools, in December after a lower court dismissed the case. Now, the case will be heard in federal district court and will be a defining moment in the ongoing debate, which has been ramped up by a string of injuries to female athletes at the hands of transgender athletes in recent months.

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Swimming Officials to Trial an ‘Open Category’ for Transgender Athletes

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World Aquatics, the world swimming governing body, announced Tuesday that it will set up an “open category” that will include transgender athletes, according to The Associated Press.

The governing body banned most male athletes from competing in the female division in 2022 following uproar over Lia Thomas, a transgender swimmer who won a national title in women’s swimming after competing in the men’s collegiate division for three years. The president of World Aquatics, Husain Al-Musallam, said an “open category” swimming event will take place alongside other races, according to the AP.

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Missouri Governor Signs Bills Protecting Women’s Sports and Minors from Experimental Transgender Drugs and Surgeries

Susan Berry, PhD

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson (R) signed two bills Wednesday, one that blocks biological males from competing in women’s sports and another that protects minors from experimental transgender drug treatments and surgeries.

“Today, in an effort to protect the integrity of female sports and Missouri children from potentially harmful experimental surgeries and treatment, I have signed Senate Bill (SB) 39 and SB 49 into law,” Parson posted to Twitter.

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Sens. Ron Johnson, Tommy Tuberville Join Colleagues in Defending Women’s Sports: ‘Leaving Women at a Complete Disadvantage in Activities Specifically Meant for Them’

Susan Berry, PhD

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) joined Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) and other GOP senators Tuesday in a public comment to Biden Education Secretary Miguel Cardona that opposes the department’s proposed rule to expand Title IX to allow biological males to compete in women’s sports, and specifically points out how the rule will undermine the original intention of Title IX.

The education department’s proposed rule, titled “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance: Sex-Related Eligibility Criteria for Male and Female Athletic Teams” was published in the Federal Register on April 6.

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Ohio’s Bid to Keep Transgender Athletes Out of Women’s Sports Fails

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The Ohio state House of Representatives failed to pass a bill that would have banned transgender athletes from competing in sports outside of their biological gender, despite passing the Ohio state Senate only hours before.

The bill was first introduced in the House in June by Rep. Jena Powell and originally included a line requiring athletes to undergo a physical exam to determine their biological gender, according to FOX 8. During a 2 a.m. vote, the House failed to pass the bill after the state Senate included it in Senate bill 178, which stripped the State Board of Education of significant powers and gave control of educational policy enforcement to the governor Wednesday, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

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Herschel Walker Rips Biological Men Competing Against Women in Sports: ‘Unfair and Wrong’

Susan Berry, PhD

Georgia Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate Herschel Walker blasts allowing biological men to compete against women in sports in a new runoff election campaign ad that features former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines.

Gaines tied with transgender athlete Lia Thomas for fifth place in the women’s 200-yard freestyle finals during this year’s NCAA championships, but was not awarded the fifth-place trophy.

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Pennsylvania Women’s Groups Silent After UPenn’s Lia Thomas Wins National Championship

Peter D'Abrosca

Women’s groups in Pennsylvania are quiet after the University of Pennsylvania’s (UPenn) biologically male transgender swimmer Lia Thomas won the women’s National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) 500-yard freestyle swimming championship at the end of last week.

The Pennsylvania National Organization for Women (PNOW), Women’s Way and the Women’s Law Project did not return The Pennsylvania Daily Star’s Tuesday comment requests regarding whether they felt Thomas’ win was a victory for women.

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University of Pennsylvania Trans Swimmer Breaks Another Women’s Record, Finishes a Lap Ahead of Competition

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Transgender swimmer Lia Thomas won an Ivy League Championship in the women’s 500-yard freestyle event Thursday, beating most of her competitors by about one lap, according to multiple sources.

Thomas, who competed on the University of Pennsylvania men’s team for three years before adopting a transgender identity, beat the second-place 500 free swimmer by seven and a half seconds and the third-place swimmer by more than ten seconds, according to an event summary.

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16 University of Pennsylvania Swimmers Say Trans Teammate Should Not Be Allowed to Compete

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Sixteen women on the University of Pennsylvania swim team said their transgender teammate, Lia Thomas, should not be allowed to compete in the women’s category, The Washington Post reported.

The teammates sent a letter to the university and to Ivy League officials asking that they not take legal action against new NCAA rules which would block Thomas from competing in the 2022 championships, according to the Post. The women said they supported Thomas’s decision to live as a transgender woman, but they say “the biology of sex is a separate issue from someone’s gender identity.”

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Swimmer Says Her Team Is Uncomfortable Sharing Locker Room with Trans Swimmer Lia Thomas

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A female swimmer at the University of Pennsylvania said the school brushed off her and her teammates’ concerns about sharing locker rooms with a male swimmer, the Daily Mail reported.

She and her teammates felt uncomfortable sharing locker rooms with transgender swimmer Lia Thomas, who has male body parts and is reportedly “attracted to women,” according to the Daily Mail.

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NCAA Updates Trans Athlete Policy After Lia Thomas Swept Up Women’s Swimming Titles

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The NCAA changed its policy on transgender athlete participation Wednesday as concern mounted over swimmer Lia Thomas, a biological male, identifying as a woman and immediately dominating the sport.

Transgender athletes will need to show testosterone levels within their sport’s approved range four weeks before championship selections, according to the new rules. They will need to document their testosterone levels at the beginning of the season as well as four weeks before championship selections in the coming academic year.

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Transgender Ideology Threatens Future of Sports, Warns Former University of Minnesota Swimmer

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people in swimming pool

A former member of the women’s swimming and diving team at the University of Minnesota has sounded the alarm against the inclusion of biological men in women’s athletics.

On Dec. 19, Jenna Stocker published an article in National Review that called transgender athletes an “affront to the fairness of sports.”

“Nothing has threatened the future of sports more than transgender integration,” she said.

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Student Shatters Women’s Swimming Records After Switching from Men’s Team

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Person swimming

Lia Thomas, a swimmer at the University of Pennsylvania, shattered records after transitioning from male to female and joining the women’s team.

Thomas, who is biologically male, competed for three years on the men’s team before moving to the women’s team after transitioning, the Daily Mail reported. NCAA rules require males to undergo at least one year of testosterone suppression treatment before they can compete in the women’s category.

Thomas’s top time for the 500 Free event in the male category was 4:18.72. Thomas won the 500 Free while competing against Villanova and participated in eight regular season events as a male in the 2019-2020 season.

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International Olympic Committee Says Biological Male Trans Athletes Should Not Have to Lower Testosterone to Compete in Women’s Events

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The International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommended that sports organizations allow biologically male, transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports without lowering their testosterone levels.

The IOC stated that no athlete should be excluded from competition based on unverified, alleged or perceived unfair competitive advantage due to biological sex in a Tuesday report. The report says athletes should compete in sports based on their self-determined gender identity and should not be subject to “targeted testing” to determine biological sex.

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Athletes Fighting Biological Males in Women’s Sports Take Their Stories to Washington

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“We’re not often heard,” Cynthia Monteleone told a trio of female senators Thursday afternoon on Capitol Hill. “Though we are just three of thousands that this is happening to.”

Monteleone is a world champion track athlete who competed against a transgender competitor in the 2018 World Masters Athletics Championships in Málaga, Spain. Dressed in a white pantsuit with a fresh tropical flower tucked behind her ear, she spent Wednesday and Thursday urging Republican lawmakers to fight back against biological males competing in women’s sports.

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Ohio Republicans Reintroduce Bill to Ban Trans Girls from Girls Sports

Peter D'Abrosca

As Florida’s governor singed into law Tuesday a bill that bans transgender girls – biological boys – from competing in girl’s sports, Republican lawmakers in Ohio reintroduced a bill that would do the same. 

The Save Women’s Sports Act was reintroduced by Rep. Jena Powell (R-Arcanum), and co-sponsored by Rep. Reggie Stoltzfus (R-Paris Township), who first introduced the bill during Ohio’s shortened legislative session last year. 

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Biden Administration Eliminates Religious Exemptions for Doctors

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Under the Biden Administration, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has eliminated religious conscience exemptions for doctors who are forced to perform gender-alteration surgeries, according to the Washington Free Beacon.

The move represents yet another crucial and widely-popular policy that was first enacted by President Donald Trump, only for Biden to reverse it. HHS announced on Monday that to overturn this policy, it would be expanding its definition of sex discrimination so that sexual preference and “gender orientation” would be included among identities that could be considered discriminated against by such a policy.

HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra released a statement in which he claimed that “people have a right not to be discriminated against on the basis of sex and receive equal treatment under the law, no matter their gender identity or sexual orientation. That’s why today HHS announced it will act on related reports of discrimination.”

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NCAA Signals That It May Pull Championships from States That Protect Women’s Sports

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Women playing basketball

The NCAA signaled that it may pull championship games from places that stop biological males from competing in women’s sports.

The collegiate sports league released a statement on Monday reaffirming that it supports “the opportunity for transgender student-athletes to compete in college sports,” which is grounded in the value of “fair competition.”

“The NCAA has a long-standing policy that provides a more inclusive path for transgender participation in college sports,” continues the statement. “Our approach — which requires testosterone suppression treatment for transgender women to compete in women’s sports — embraces the evolving science on this issue and is anchored in participation policies of both the International Olympic Committee and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee.”

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A Win for Tennessee’s Female Athletes: House Passes Bill Protecting Girls in Sports, Now Heads to Governor for Approval

Corinne Murdock

The Tennessee General Assembly determined that girls in sports shouldn’t have to fear lost opportunities or bodily harm due to transgender athletes. The House passed House Bill 3 on Monday, after a debate lasting nearly half an hour.

In the House, the bill passed largely along party lines: 71 to 16, with 5 persons abstaining their vote. Only one Republican voted against the bill: State Representative Eddie Mannis (R-Knoxville). Only two Democrats voted for the bill: State Representatives Antonio Parkinson (D-Memphis) and John Mark Windle (D-Livingston).

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Mississippi Becomes First State to Ban Transgender Students from Women’s Sports

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Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves signed a bill into law Thursday barring transgender athletes in public schools and colleges from competing in women’s sports.

The bill, SB 2536, is the first of such legislation to be signed into law this year, though similar initiatives have appeared in other states across the country. South Dakota’s Senate sent a similar bill to the desk of Republican Gov. Kristi Noem on Monday.

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Lee Denounces Biden Executive Order, Says Transgender Athletes ‘Will Destroy Women’s Sports’

The Center Square

Responding to a bill in the Tennessee Legislature that would ban transgender individuals from participating in girls’ middle school and high school athletics, Gov. Bill Lee said Wednesday that trans participation would “destroy women’s sports.”

Speaking to reporters at the state Capitol on Wednesday, Lee stopped short of voicing support for a Tennessee bill that would prohibit trans students from participating in middle and high school girls’ athletics, but he spoke to the issue.

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Tennessee General Assembly Moves on Bill Protecting Girls in Sports, Challenging Biden’s Executive Order

Corinne Murdock

Once again, Tennessee’s General Assembly has taken up a bill ensuring biological sex is a factor in youth sports. Although the bill would apply to both genders, its preamble identified girls as the motivator for drafting the legislation. It referenced the general biological differences between the genders in competition, as well as noted the impact on female athletes when it comes to college recruiting and scholarship opportunities.

“[I]t is unfortunate for some girls that those dreams, goals, and opportunities for participation, recruitment, and scholarships can be directly and negatively affected by new school policies permitting boys who are male in every biological respect to compete in girls’ athletic competitions if they claim a female gender identity,” stated the bill. 

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Rep. Green Co-Sponsors Bill to Save Women’s Sports

Peter D'Abrosca

Republicans in the U.S. House, including one from Tennessee, are stepping in to try to stop President Joe Biden from essentially ending women’s sports. 

“Sports are based on the idea of fair competition. Allowing biological males to compete in women’s sports destroys a level playing field and denies women an equal opportunity,” Rep. Mark Green (R-TN-07) said on Twitter. “Today, I cosponsored [Rep. Greg Steube’s] bill to protect the integrity of women’s sports.”

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Commentary: High School Runner Who Lost to Transgender Athletes Will Compete in College

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By now, millions know the story of Selina Soule, the high school track star from Connecticut who missed qualifying for the New England track and field regionals by two spots in her top event. Those two spots were taken by biological boys who identify as girls.

Soule, who is wise beyond her years, was well aware that she could face consequences for speaking out about being forced to compete against biological males. But she recognized a greater need.

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28 Congressional Democrats Sign Letter Demanding Department Of Education Allow Biological Males in Girls’ Sports

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Twenty-eight congressional Democrats signed a letter Wednesday condemning the Department of Education for ruling that public schools that allow biological males who identify as transgender to play girls’ sports are violating Title IX civil rights legislation.

Democratic Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal joined 27 House Democrats in signing the letter, which charged that the department’s order “discriminates against transgender youth” by restricting girls’ sports to biological females.

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Ohio Bill Proposal Would Prevent Biological Men From Competing in Women’s Sports

Zachery Schmidt

Two Ohio state representatives are set to introduce a bill this week that would prevent biological men from competing in women’s sports.

The Save Women’s Sports Act (SWSA), co-sponsored by Jena Powell (R-Arcanum) and Reggie Stoltzfus (R-Paris Twp.), will designate that sport teams be based on a person’s biological sex rather than how he or she feels.

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Male Women’s Track Champion Says Female Competitors Actually Have Advantage

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by Peter Hasson   The male track athlete who won an NCAA women’s national championship denies having an unfair advantage over female runners. “If anything, me competing against cisgender females is a disadvantage because my body is going through so many medical implications, like it’s going through biochemistry changes,” Franklin Pierce University runner CeCe Telfer told ESPN’s “Outside The Lines” in a feature that aired Thursday. "If anything, me competing against cisgender females is a disadvantage.."@FPUathletics track star CeCe Telfer talks about the physical challenges she faces while competing as a transgender woman. pic.twitter.com/9VhlOVA70V — Outside The Lines (@OTLonESPN) June 13, 2019 “So being on hormone replacement therapy, your muscle depletion, your muscle is deteriorating, you lose a lot of strength because testosterone is where you get your strength and agility and all that athletic stuff, so I have to work twice as hard to keep that strength,” Telfer said in the interview. “And if I slack a day that’s like three days set behind.” Telfer, a biological male who identifies as a transgender woman, won the NCAA DII women’s 400-meter hurdles championship last month, besting the second place finisher by more than a second. Telfer previously ran a variety…

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Biological Male Wins NCAA Women’s Track Championship

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by Peter Hasson   A biological male who identifies as a transgender woman won an NCAA national championship over Memorial Day weekend. Franklin Pierce University (FPU) runner CeCe Telfer won the DII women’s 400-meter hurdles on Saturday night, besting the second-place finisher by more than a second. “Telfer is the first student-athlete in Franklin Pierce history to collect an individual national title,” the university announced. “It was tough conditions out here with the wind and the heat over the last three days but, as she has over the last six months, CeCe proved herself to be tough enough to handle it,” FPU coach Zach Emerson said in a press release. “Today was a microcosm of her entire season; she was not going to let anything slow her down. I’ve never met anybody as strong as her mentally in my entire life,” Emerson said. Telfer’s victory came less than two hours after taking fifth place in the 100-meter hurdles. OutSports, a pro-LGBT sports website, touted Telfer as “a trans athlete who doesn’t win every time.” Telfer previously ran a variety of events for Franklin Pierce’s men’s team, during most of which time he went by the first name Craig, according to…

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