President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning transgender athletes from women’s sports Feb. 5, which was also National Women and Girls in Sports Day.
“The radical left has waged an all-out campaign to erase the very concept of biological sex and replace it with a militant transgender ideology,” Trump said at the signing. “With this executive order, the war on women’s sports is over.”
This order only bans transgender women in sports, not transgender men. The executive order is titled “Keeping Men out of Women’s Sports,” and is the fourth executive order targeting transgender people Trump has signed since he took office Jan. 20.
The three other executive orders declare that there are only two sexes: male and female, ban transgender people from serving in the military and halt the use of federal money to support gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth under 19 years old.
Complying with the executive order, organizations like the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) announced on Feb. 6 that transgender women will be barred from competing in women’s sports.
“We strongly believe that clear, consistent and uniform eligibility standards would best serve today’s student-athletes instead of a patchwork of conflicting state laws and court decisions,” Charlie Baker, the president of the NCAA, said in a statement. “To that end, President Trump’s order provides a clear, national standard.”
The Illinois High School Association said that “out of 320,000 student athletes, only three people born male asked for and received waivers to compete in girls’ sports last year.”
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) says the issue hasn’t come up often in Illinois because state law specifically allows people to access bathrooms, locker rooms and sports based on their gender identity.
Illinois Republican lawmakers introduced a bill in January 2025, attempting to ban transgender student-athletes. If passed, the bill would require students to provide proof of their biological sex and show that they are not taking hormones.
Related Stories:
- Trump reshapes policy with flurry of executive orders
- Trans students and organizers rally against healthcare ban at UIC campus
- Live Updates: DePaul unsuccessful in loss against Seton Hall
Stay informed with The DePaulia’s top stories,
delivered to your inbox every Monday.
