A legal battle between the NCAA and the state of Texas over transgender inclusion in women’s sports is set to begin with testimony from a group of women college athletes affected by the policy change. The NCAA recently changed its gender eligibility policy to prevent biological males from competing in women’s sports, but some activists argue that the policy doesn’t go far enough to keep trans athletes out. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued the NCAA for its revised policy, demanding mandatory sex screening. The athletes testifying in the lawsuit have personal experiences with trans inclusion in women’s sports and are seeking to bring mandatory gender testing to the NCAA to prevent similar experiences in the future.
These athletes, including former San Jose State University volleyball player Brooke Slusser, former North Carolina State University swimmer Kylee Alons, and former University of Kentucky swimmer Kaitlynn Wheeler, are part of a larger lawsuit led by Riley Gaines and the Independent Council on Women’s Sports against the NCAA for its previous gender policy that allowed trans athletes to compete as women. The athletes share their concerns about transgender inclusion in women’s sports and are pushing for changes to the current policy to prevent biological males from participating in women’s sports. The lawsuit reflects complaints that the current policy could allow trans athletes to compete with an amended birth certificate, and Paxton argues that the NCAA is jeopardizing the safety and well-being of women athletes.
The lawsuit filed by Paxton against the NCAA accuses the organization of false and deceptive practices by allowing mixed-sex competitions where biological males compete against biological females. Paxton argues that the NCAA’s policy is allowing biological men to participate in women’s sports and is intentionally changing women’s competitions into co-ed competitions, which goes against the expectations of fans and spectators. The NCAA, however, insists that amended birth certificates will not be accepted and that there are no waivers available for student-athletes assigned male at birth to compete on women’s teams. The NCAA also acknowledges the presence of male practice players in college sports, particularly in women’s basketball, and states that the policy will continue to account for this.
In the United States, 44 states allow birth certificates to be altered to change a person’s birth sex, while six states, including Florida, Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Montana, do not allow this. Additionally, 14 states allow sex on a birth certificate to be changed without any medical documentation required, such as California, New York, Massachusetts, and Michigan. Critics of the current NCAA policy argue that the lack of sex screening has allowed and will continue to allow biological men to participate in women’s sports, posing a threat to the fairness and safety of women athletes. The legal battle between the NCAA and the state of Texas, with testimony from these women college athletes, highlights the ongoing controversy and debate surrounding transgender inclusion in women’s sports and the efforts to implement stricter policies to address the issue.
