The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) has formally prohibited men from competing in women’s sports, aligning its policies with President Donald Trump’s executive order signed earlier this year. The move has been praised by Catholic leaders and others who see it as a necessary defense of truth, fairness, and the dignity of female athletes.
The USOPC’s updated “Athlete Safety Policy” affirms it will “continue to collaborate with various stakeholders with oversight responsibilities… to ensure that women have a fair and safe competition environment consistent with Executive Order 14201 and the Ted Stevens Olympic & Amateur Sports Act,” according to an official statement.
Executive Order 14201—titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports”—was signed by President Trump on February 5. At the signing, Trump declared, “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.”
Critics of transgender ideology have long warned that allowing biological males to compete against women erodes the very foundation of fairness in sport. This latest policy shift from the Olympic committee marks one of the most high-profile rejections of transgender inclusion in elite competition to date.
“As a federally chartered organization, we have an obligation to comply with federal expectations,” the USOPC wrote in a letter to Team USA members, according to NBC News. The committee emphasized that the updated guidance “reinforces our mandated responsibility to promote athlete safety and competitive fairness.”
The letter also stated that national governing bodies under the USOPC’s jurisdiction must now revise their own policies to align with the executive order, ensuring the new standards are enforced nationwide.
Catholic leaders have welcomed the move, pointing to the Church’s clear teaching on the differences between men and women and the moral dangers of gender ideology. Earlier this year, Pope Francis warned that transgenderism is “one of the most dangerous ideological colonizations of our time.” And the U.S. bishops praised President Trump’s efforts to protect female athletes, citing the fundamental reality of biological sex.
The pushback has been swift from progressives and gender activists. The National Women’s Law Center described the policy as a “cruel effort” to exclude “transgender women” from competition, even though those individuals are biologically male.
Legal challenges are already underway. The Department of Education has ordered the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) to comply with federal policy and ban males from competing in girls’ sports, but both the CIF and the California Department of Education have refused. In response, Education Secretary Linda McMahon announced she will take legal action against Governor Gavin Newsom and the state.
Meanwhile, conservative state leaders and legal officials are rallying behind the policy. “These women champions earned those records. They trained, competed, and won, only to have their victories stolen by male athletes,” said Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey. “Biological reality matters,” he added, calling male participation in women’s sports “a grave injustice” and a threat to the integrity of athletics.
The issue is now heading toward the U.S. Supreme Court, which announced it will hear two cases next term involving challenges to state bans on males in female sports leagues in Idaho and West Virginia.
As the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles approaches, President Trump has made clear: “We’re just not going to let it happen.”
The Catholic Church, too, has made clear where it stands: on the side of truth, justice, and the rightful dignity of women.
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