In a significant move to safeguard the rights of women and girls in sports, President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday, titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” affirming his commitment to protecting the opportunities of female athletes. The order aims to prevent biologically male athletes from competing in women’s sports, a growing concern for many women’s rights advocates, especially within the context of Catholic teachings on the dignity and equality of women.
Trump declared, “With this executive order, the war on women’s sports is over,” surrounded by young female athletes who supported the initiative. “Under the Trump administration, we will defend the proud tradition of female athletes and we will not allow men to beat up, injure, and cheat our women and our girls. From now on, women’s sports will be only for women,” he added, emphasizing the importance of preserving the sanctity and fairness of women’s competitions.
This executive order builds upon the foundation of Title IX, a crucial law passed in 1972 to ensure that schools and educational institutions receiving federal funds provide equal opportunities to female athletes. According to the executive order, “educational institutions receiving federal funds cannot deny women an equal opportunity to participate in sports,” underscoring the intent to keep women’s sports spaces fair and exclusive to women. The order threatens to withhold federal funding from any schools that do not comply, ensuring that the rights of female athletes are defended with the full weight of federal law.
In recent years, the inclusion of men in women’s sports has sparked controversy, with increasing reports of harm and unfair competition. One such example is Payton McNabb, who was 17 when she became partially paralyzed after a biologically male athlete spiked a volleyball into her face. McNabb now suffers from brain damage and paralysis, struggling with mobility due to the injury. According to the order, “In recent years, a growing number of women and girls have been harmed by the inclusion of men in women’s sports,” highlighting the real-world consequences of these changes.
The executive order aims to protect the integrity of women’s sports by ensuring that women’s teams remain exclusively for women. As Trump said, “If you let men take over women’s sports teams or invade your locker rooms, you will be investigated for violations of Title IX and you will risk your federal funding.” This firm stance is a call to action for educational institutions, sports organizations, and government agencies to respect the biological differences between men and women and uphold the rights and dignity of female athletes.
Trump’s executive order also looks forward to upcoming international sporting events, including the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy and the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. The order encourages the International Olympic Committee to revise its standards to ensure that eligibility for women’s sports is determined by biological sex, not gender identity or testosterone levels. In 2024, controversy arose when an Algerian boxer with male chromosomes defeated an Italian female boxer in a brief but intense match. The order states, “The order instructs the secretary of state to ‘use all appropriate and available measures to see that the International Olympic Committee amends the standards governing Olympic sporting events to promote fairness, safety, and the best interests of female athletes.’”
For Catholics, this executive order is an important reaffirmation of the values rooted in Scripture and the Church’s teachings about the dignity and complementarity of men and women. The Catechism of the Catholic Church stresses that “man and woman are made for each other,” and that their differences are part of God’s divine plan for humanity. Women’s sports, just like any other area of life, must respect this fundamental truth and the equal but distinct roles that men and women have in society.
Trump’s order is also in line with a broader commitment to defending biological truth, as evidenced by his earlier executive order, “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government.” The order insists that the federal government recognizes two sexes, male and female, as immutable and grounded in reality. This stance protects not only the safety and opportunities of women but also upholds the sanctity of human life as understood through the lens of Catholic moral teaching.
As women’s rights groups and athletes continue to advocate for fair competition, the “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” order stands as a significant step in ensuring that women’s spaces, especially in sports, remain safe and equitable. It serves as a reminder of the importance of upholding the dignity of women and girls in every area of life, including sports, where their hard-earned accomplishments and equal opportunities should not be undermined.
As President Trump concluded, “There will be no federal funding” for any institution that allows men to compete in women’s sports, sending a clear message about the importance of fairness and integrity in the athletic world. Catholics and people of good will can support this initiative as it aligns with a broader movement to protect the inherent dignity and rights of women as equal and irreplaceable members of society.
