Former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines and other women’s sports advocates have strongly criticized the NCAA’s latest transgender athlete policy, claiming it fails to align with President Trump’s recent executive order on protecting women’s sports.
The NCAA’s new policy uses terminology such as “sex assigned at birth” to determine athlete eligibility, which has drawn sharp criticism from advocates who argue that biological sex is determined by chromosomes, not assignment.
“The new NCAA policy is NOT in compliance with President Trump’s beautifully and thoroughly written Executive Order. It’s in direct contrast,” Gaines wrote on social media. “The NCAA is governed by cowards.”
The policy has come under particular scrutiny for its reliance on birth records as verification of an athlete’s sex. Jennifer Sey, founder of XX-XY Athletics, pointed out a significant flaw in this approach.
“Self ID ain’t it. And that’s all that is required in the NCAA’s new policy. Birth certificates can be changed in all but 6 states,” Sey stated. “And verification of sex in this policy is a birth certificate. See the problem?”
Critics argue that the NCAA’s new guidelines fall short of providing clear, science-based criteria for participation in women’s sports. The policy’s dependence on documentation that can be modified in most states has raised concerns about its effectiveness in maintaining fair competition in women’s athletics.
Gaines, who has become a prominent voice in women’s sports advocacy since her collegiate swimming career, continues to push for policies that she believes will better protect women’s athletic opportunities. The debate comes at a time of increasing national attention on transgender participation in sports and related policy decisions.
