Trump praises IOC for policy protecting women's Olympic sports categories

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday congratulated the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for what he described as a decision to limit eligibility in women's sports categories to biological females, enforced through SRY gene screening.

Trump attributed the change to his executive order signed in February, titled "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports," writing on Truth Social: "Congratulations to the International Olympic Committee on their decision to ban Men from Women’s Sports. This is only happening because of my powerful Executive Order, standing up for Women and Girls!"

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt echoed the sentiment, stating: "You cannot change your sex. President Trump's Executive Order protecting women's sports made this happen!"

The IOC policy, as quoted, states: "Eligibility for any female category event at the Olympic Games or any other IOC event, including individual and team sports, is now limited to biological females, determined on the basis of a one-time SRY gene screening."

The claim comes amid ongoing global debates on athlete eligibility criteria. Some international federations have adopted genetic testing; World Athletics requires athletes in female categories to undergo SRY gene testing if they do not meet testosterone thresholds.[1] World Boxing announced a similar genetic screening requirement for its female categories in October 2024.[2] The IOC's current framework defers eligibility rules to individual sports federations, without a universal genetic test mandate.[3]

U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) CEO Sarah Hirshland and Chief Medical Officer Jonathan Finnoff addressed related topics at a media summit, with Finnoff noting U.S. exploration of sex verification options used by bodies like World Athletics.[4]

The U.S. Supreme Court has considered related state laws restricting transgender athletes in female school sports categories. West Virginia and Idaho attorneys general, leading such cases, welcomed the reported IOC move, crediting Trump's leadership.

West Virginia AG John McCuskey said the decision reflects "generalized common sense," adding: "President Trump showed up. I don't believe the IOC would be doing this if President Trump hadn't taken a bold leadership position on this."

Idaho AG Raul Labrador stated: "The IOC just announced that Olympic women's sports will be limited to biological females starting in 2028. This is a major step forward for fairness and safety in women's athletics."

Sources

1. World Athletics. "Eligibility Regulations for the Female Classification." 2023. https://worldathletics.org/about-iaaf/documents/book-of-rules
2. World Boxing. "World Boxing announces compulsory sex-testing for all athletes." 30 October 2024. https://www.wbboxing.org/
3. International Olympic Committee. "IOC Framework on Fairness, Inclusion and Non-discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sex variations." 16 November 2021. https://www.olympic.org/news/ioc-framework-on-fairness-inclusion-and-non-discrimination
4. U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee. "USOPC Leadership." Accessed 2024. https://www.usopc.org/about-the-usopc/leadership-team