USA Fencing and the US Olympic Committee bar men from competing in the women's category

Today was a good day.

First, USA Fencing announced that it would implement a new “Transgender & Non-Binary Policy” starting on Aug 1, 2025—aligning with the federal executive order from the Trump administration.

The new rules still allow everyone to compete, of course, but “gender identity” plays no role in the category for which athletes are eligible. Men compete in men’s. Period. If they are “trans identified,” “non-binary” or some other gender woo category, they can compete in men’s. Sex defines what category an athlete is eligible for.

Later in the day, the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee changed its eligibility rules to adhere with President Trump’s executive order. In doing so, the organization took the decision away from individual sport governing bodies. In the past, the USOPC left it to the individual sports but they have now used their authority to override that. The individual sport governing bodies are funded by the USOPC.

The new policy was quietly snuck in in a vaguely worded paragraph tucked under the category of “USOPC Athlete Safety Policy” on their website.

It doesn’t include any details about how it will work, how sex will be verified and it does not include the word “transgender.” Nor does it reference the name of Trump’s executive order, “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.” Instead it references “Executive Order 14201.”

The Olympic committee said in its new policy that it was “committed to protecting opportunities for athletes participating in sport [. . .] to ensure that women have a fair and safe competition environment consistent with Executive Order 14201 and the Ted Stevens Olympic & Amateur Sports Act.” Essentially they said they would uphold Title IX.

In an emailed statement to The New York Times, the USOPC said that it had held “a series of respectful and constructive conversations with federal officials” since the executive order was implemented. “As a federally chartered organization, we have an obligation to comply with federal expectations.”

While the USOPC is largely funded by private corporations, they operate under a federal charter. So they sit outside of Title IX, which is specific to federally funded education programs. But they operate at the behest of the federal government. If they do not comply, they risk losing their charter. And I think we all know this administration isn’t playing.

Of note, the USOPC’s old policy which left it to individual governing bodies, remains on their website.

And here was their old policy/non-policy:

This matters for more than just sports. These organizations cannot say that women’s sports are for women only without acknowledging that men who think they are women are not women. So we have major progress here.

That said, Governor Gavin Newsom is suing the federal government to allow boys to compete in girls’ sports in California. Male track and field athlete Sadie Schreiner is suing Princeton for not allowing him to compete in the women’s category in a track meet at the university. And it is headline news that Rahm Emanuel said yesterday that men can’t be women.

We have a ways to go.

Blue states will continue to allow boys to compete in girls’ sports and they will be investigated by the Department of Education. But they will do it. They believe that they are right, they are social justice warriors fighting for progress and that those of us who believe biology is real are hopeless outdated bigots of the Archie Bunker variety.

If we have a Democratic president next he can write a new executive order.

If we don’t change the culture, we won’t win. It isn’t “progressive” to let boys steals girls’ opportunities. We aren’t backwards bigots. We are simply rooted in reality and we won’t be bullied by unhinged activists who care more about men’s feelings than girls’ rights.

So we keep going.