President Donald Trump is set to sign an executive order on Wednesday that will prevent individuals who were biologically assigned male at birth from participating in women's and girls’ sporting events. This decision represents a significant turn in the federal government’s approach to transgender rights under Trump's administration. The announcement coincides with National Girls and Women in Sports Day, highlighting his government's intent to redefine gender participation in athletics.

Upon taking office last month, Trump issued a sweeping directive focusing on defining sex strictly as male or female, a policy that will also influence federal documents such as AP News, passports, and the assignment of individuals in federal prisons. This executive order ties back to his political campaign, where he emphasized the need to “keep men out of women’s sports.” A recent AP VoteCast survey suggested that a majority of voters feel transgender rights in government and society have exceeded their limits.

During the campaign, Trump also denounced what he called “transgender insanity,” although he provided little detail on how such issues would be managed. The upcoming order is expected to reinterpret Title IX, the pivotal law aimed at ensuring gender equity in sports and preventing sexual harassment on college campuses.

U.S. Representative Nancy Mace from South Carolina stated, “This executive order restores fairness, upholds Title IX’s original intent, and defends the rights of female athletes who have worked their whole lives to compete at the highest levels.” Republicans are particularly vocal about this shift, urging for stricter definitions of participation based on traditional interpretations of Title IX.

Former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos previously implemented a Title IX policy in 2020 that limited the scope of sexual harassment definitions and changed reporting requirements for colleges. In contrast, the Biden administration rolled back that policy last April, promoting protections for LGBTQ+ students and encouraging a more progressive approach to campus safety. However, this rollback faced legal challenges from various Republican-led states.

Doriane Lambelet Coleman, a professor at Duke Law School, remarked that Trump's administration could simply state, “We are going to read the regulation traditionally,” indicating the potential for policy reversals with each administration. The exact implications of Trump's order on the transgender athlete community remain uncertain, especially as many states that have implemented bans have struggled to substantiate instances where transgender participation posed a significant issue.

As noted by Purdue University professor Cheryl Cooky, “This is a solution looking for a problem.” She emphasizes that the discourse around transgender athletes often amplifies isolated cases, such as the instances of Lia Thomas, who gained attention while competing for the University of Pennsylvania, and recent discussions surrounding other collegiate sports athletes.

For further information, you can read more about this initiative in detail at TIME, SFGATE, Los Angeles Times, and AP Sports.