A trans-identifying male competed in the U.S. Masters Swimming Spring National Championship meet, and he took gold medals in every event he entered — in the 45-49 age group of the women&#8217;s division.
<a href="https://www.usms.org/comp/meets/meetsearch.php?c=1221718&amp;MeetID=20250424SpNatsY" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ana Caldas</a>, who has also raced under the names Hannah Caldas and Hugo Caldas, swam in five individual events and three relays over the course of the four-day competition in San Antonio — and won every individual race: the 50 yard freestyle, the 100 yard freestyle, the 50 yard breaststroke, and the 100 yard breaststroke. Caldas came in a full three seconds ahead of the second place finisher in the 100 yard freestyle, and four seconds ahead in the 50 and 100 yard breaststroke events.
The Independent Council on Women’s Sports (ICONS) reached out to the U.S. Masters Swimming (USMS) board after Caldas won his first individual event on Friday, referencing the body&#8217;s stated rules — which require trans-identifying male swimmers to have received hormone therapy and to show proof of testosterone levels below 5 nmol/L — and saying that was hardly enough to protect the female athletes who were losing medals and opportunities to men.
&#8220;Transparency in these matters is critical to maintaining the integrity of the competition and the trust of all USMS athletes. There is no length of time during which testosterone suppression eliminates male advantage; therefore it should not serve as a guideline permitting men to compete in women’s swimming. At a minimum, it is USMS’s responsibility to enforce its current policy,&#8221; the letter read, in part.
&#8220;He’s just laughing at these women,&#8221; an ICONS spokeswoman said.
As <a href="https://reduxx.info/trans-identified-male-swimmer-dominates-womens-events-at-the-u-s-masters-spring-championships/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reduxx reported</a>, it is not clear whether or not Caldas&#8217; competitors knew that he was male:
<blockquote>&#8230;he has been competing as a woman in swimming, rowing, and Crossfit for decades, and has been careful to conceal his previous identity. However, Caldas’ birth name is still listed on multiple research papers he co-authored as an academic, and in <a href="https://prod.wp.cdn.aws.wfu.edu/sites/275/2018/10/gb2009-2010.pdf">records from Wake Forest University</a> where he was a <a href="https://archive.is/E3zqW">member of the faculty</a>. Caldas also co-applied for a <a href="https://archive.ph/sUmQf">patent in 2004</a> using the names “Hugo” and “Hannah.”</blockquote>
Former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines shared the story via X, adding, &#8220;A man who goes by the name Ana swam five events at the U.S. Masters Swimming National Championship. He won them all. Real life South Park episode.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
A man who goes by the name Ana swam five events at the U.S. Masters Swimming National Championship.
He won them all.
Real life South Park episode. 
<a href="https://t.co/Mw2jL9BukD">https://t.co/Mw2jL9BukD</a>
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) <a href="https://twitter.com/Riley_Gaines_/status/1916987679603908676?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 28, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;INSANITY. At this weekend’s U.S. Masters Spring National Championships, Hugo &#8216;Ana&#8217; Caldas, a male athlete, took first place in 5 Women’s individual events. Here he is crushing the Women&#8217;s breast stroke 45-49 category, winning by a full 3 seconds, in a time of 29.74. Anyone who competes in swimming at the national level knows this is unheard of in a 50 yard race where wins are often measured in a tenth or a hundredth of a second,&#8221; Beth Bourne added.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🚨🚨INSANITY. At this weekend’s U.S. Masters Spring National Championships, Hugo “Ana” Caldas, a male athlete, took first place in 5 Women’s individual events.
Here he is crushing the Women&#8217;s breast stroke 45-49 category, winning by a full 3 seconds, in a time of 29.74.… <a href="https://t.co/EPfuFe6wOh">pic.twitter.com/EPfuFe6wOh</a>
— Beth Bourne (@bourne_beth2345) <a href="https://twitter.com/bourne_beth2345/status/1916587569598595106?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 27, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;Michael Jordan at 60 years old could suit up today and be the best &#8216;WOMAN&#8217; in the @wnba and maybe THEN the stupid people in the U.S. Masters Swimming National Championship would SEE THEIR OWN INSANITY!&#8221; Rob Schneider posted.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Michael Jordan at 60 years old could suit up today and be the best “WOMAN” in the <a href="https://twitter.com/WNBA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WNBA</a> and maybe THEN the stupid people in the U.S. Masters Swimming National Championship would SEE THEIR OWN INSANITY! <a href="https://t.co/I1Tdwh5gi7">https://t.co/I1Tdwh5gi7</a>
— Rob Schneider 🇺🇸 (@RobSchneider) <a href="https://twitter.com/RobSchneider/status/1917255362866266307?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2025</a></blockquote>
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A swimmer warms up before a meet at Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.

Trans-Identifying Male Sweeps Women’s Events At U.S. Masters Swim National Championships

Social Issues

Sports

Swimming

Transgender Athletes

U.S.

Women's Swimming

The world famous Boston Marathon has three race categories for participants based on gender — but because of lax gender identity standards, male runners have the opportunity to compete — and could win the top prizes — in all three categories: male, female, and non-binary.
Former Levi Strauss executive Jennifer Sey — who is an outspoken advocate for biological women and girls in sports and the founder of XX-XY Athletics — shared some details about the famous footrace in an op-ed published Sunday by the New York Post.
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A man is eligible to win every Boston Marathon category — men’s, women’s and non-binary, too. No space is protected for women. <a href="https://t.co/7rNQfJTVzX">pic.twitter.com/7rNQfJTVzX</a>
&mdash; Jennifer Sey (@JenniferSey) <a href="https://twitter.com/JenniferSey/status/1913992937203184082?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 20, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Sey noted that the Boston Marathon opened a non-binary category for runners in 2023, but that trans-identifying male runner Riya Suising — born Robert Chien Hwa Young — was still allowed to enter the race in the female category because he claims that he is a woman. It will not be Suising&#8217;s first outing, either — the longtime runner &#8220;has competed in races in the female category more than 338 times since 2009, medaling for his age group more than 140 times.&#8221;
&#8220;It means a man could win every Boston Marathon category — men’s, women’s and non-binary, too. No space is protected for women,&#8221; Sey wrote. &#8220;On a day meant to honor courage and freedom, is this what breaking barriers really means?&#8221;
Because those entering the race as &#8220;non-binary&#8221; could be biologically either male or female, the qualifying time for that category is the same as the women&#8217;s qualifying time — which is slower than the men&#8217;s time, Sey wrote: &#8220;The official qualifying time for women is 16.6% slower than for men — a full 30 minutes — recognizing a fact we all know to be true: men are faster than women.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Registration for Boston 2024 is open!
Men! Failed to qualify under the men’s times? No matter! You could still get in with a time 30 mins slower than your fellow men by declaring yourself non-binary! 🎉
Women! No such luxury for you. 😔<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/trainharder?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#trainharder</a> <a href="https://t.co/qGa3nj2tZM">https://t.co/qGa3nj2tZM</a> <a href="https://t.co/eeGs48cDQL">pic.twitter.com/eeGs48cDQL</a>
&mdash; Mara Yamauchi (@mara_yamauchi) <a href="https://twitter.com/mara_yamauchi/status/1701255359392792620?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 11, 2023</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;The prestige of the Boston Marathon was ruined when they created a non-binary category allowing men to qualify by running a female qualifying time. Now they allow men to compete in the women’s category too. Skip Boston. There are plenty of beautiful courses to run,&#8221; Storm Robinson posted in response.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
The prestige of the Boston Marathon was ruined when they created a non-binary category allowing men to qualify by running a female qualifying time. Now they allow men to compete in the women’s category too.
Skip Boston. There are plenty of beautiful courses to run. <a href="https://t.co/bmPfdEQpGn">https://t.co/bmPfdEQpGn</a>
&mdash; Storm (@stormrobinson) <a href="https://twitter.com/stormrobinson/status/1914006231020372025?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 20, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;The men’s category in the Boston Marathon is open to Riya Suising. The non-binary category is, too,&#8221; Sey concluded, noting that it did not matter if Suising won — the fact that he was even allowed to compete in the women&#8217;s category meant that he took a spot in the competition that should have belonged to a women. &#8220;The women’s category must not be. Misogyny looks no better in a running bra. It’s still a man insisting on special treatment, getting priority over every woman’s fair shot.&#8221;

129th Boston Marathon

Boston Marathon Has 3 Gender Categories. Men Could Win All Of Them.

Boston Marathon

Politics

Transgender

Women

Women's sports

United States District Court Judge Steven McAuliffe ruled on Monday that the Bow School District in New Hampshire could continue to eject parents from school sporting events if they wore &#8220;XX&#8221; wristbands supporting biological females in sports.
McAuliffe issued a <a href="https://nhjournal.com/judge-rules-school-can-ban-xx-protests-over-males-in-girls-sports/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">45-page ruling</a> against parents Anthony Foote, Kyle Fellers, Eldon Rash, and Nicole Foote, saying that school athletic events were considered a &#8220;limited public forum&#8221; and therefore the school district could act if it was deemed necessary to &#8220;protect&#8221; students from &#8220;adult speech that can reasonably be seen to target a specific student participating in the event.&#8221;
The protest occurred in September 2024 when the parents learned that their daughters&#8217; soccer team would compete against a team that included a trans-identifying male player, Parker Tirrell, and decided to wear the wristbands in silent protest.
But McAuliffe ruled that the bright pink wristbands would likely be interpreted as &#8220;demeaning and harassing&#8221; and seen as &#8220;directly assaulting&#8221; anyone who happened to identify as transgender.
&#8220;The message generally ascribed to the XX symbol, in a context such as that presented here, can reasonably be understood as directly assaulting those who identify as transgender women. Because gender identities are characteristics of personal identity that are ‘unalterable or otherwise deeply rooted,’ the demeaning of which ‘strikes a person at the core of his being,’ and because Bow school authorities reasonably interpreted the symbols used by plaintiffs, in context, as conveying a demeaning and harassing message, they properly interceded to protect students from injuries likely to be suffered,&#8221; McAuliffe stated.
Anthony Foote told The New Hampshire Journal that he had no intention of backing down from the fight, saying, &#8220;What was our offense? Supporting girls’ sports and defending biological reality? This ruling is a slap in the face to every parent who believes schools should be a place of fairness, not political indoctrination. The judge openly admitted that Pride flags are allowed because they promote ‘inclusion,’ but wristbands defending women’s sports are banned because they might ‘offend’ someone. That’s viewpoint discrimination, plain and simple — and it’s unconstitutional.&#8221;
Former collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines shared the story, commenting, &#8220;A federal judge just ruled that two fathers can&#8217;t wear pink wristbands that say &#8216;XX&#8217; to silently protest male inclusion in women&#8217;s sports. The judge said the female chromosomes, XX, are a &#8216;demeaning and harassing assertion.'&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
A federal judge just ruled that two fathers can&#39;t wear pink wristbands that say &quot;XX&quot; to silently protest male inclusion in women&#39;s sports 
The judge said the female chromosomes, XX, are a &quot;demeaning and harassing assertion&quot;<a href="https://t.co/AKpAovWWQn">https://t.co/AKpAovWWQn</a>
&mdash; Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) <a href="https://twitter.com/Riley_Gaines_/status/1912230227780202586?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Attorney General Pam Bondi responded to Gaines, saying, &#8220;I have asked my @CivilRights Division to examine this matter. This DOJ stands with women and their supportive parents.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
I have asked my <a href="https://twitter.com/CivilRights?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CivilRights</a> Division to examine this matter. This DOJ stands with women and their supportive parents. <a href="https://t.co/5sJZ0dEQ1y">https://t.co/5sJZ0dEQ1y</a>
&mdash; Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) <a href="https://twitter.com/AGPamBondi/status/1912298418405319086?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;This ruling is unconstitutional and will not stand. @CivilRights is examining this closely. Every father has not only a right but also a duty to stand up for his daughters, and the right to free speech is not curtailed by subjective &#8216;feelings,'&#8221; Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon added.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
This ruling is unconstitutional and will not stand. <a href="https://twitter.com/CivilRights?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CivilRights</a> is examining this closely. Every father has not only a right but also a duty to stand up for his daughters, and the right to free speech is not curtailed by subjective “feelings.” <a href="https://t.co/CE0G2iS5Gd">https://t.co/CE0G2iS5Gd</a>
&mdash; AAGHarmeetDhillon (@AAGDhillon) <a href="https://twitter.com/AAGDhillon/status/1912295300141556061?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
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XX Chromosome in the foreground, a scientific concept. 3d illustration

Judge Says School Can Ban Dads Who Wear Pink XX Wristbands To Protest Boys In Girls’ Sports

Judge Says Dads Can't Wear Pink XX Wristbands To Protest Boys Competing Against Their Daughters

Courts

female sports

gender ideology

Girls

WASHINGTON—Attorney General Pam Bondi announced a civil lawsuit against the state of Maine on Wednesday for officials&#8217; refusal to protect girls&#8217; and women&#8217;s spaces and sports per Title IX rules.
A fiery Bondi announced the lawsuit and scolded Maine leaders, noting that the Trump administration tried its best to get Maine to comply before it filed suit.
&#8220;We have no other choice, we are taking them to court,&#8221; Bondi said.
The AG was joined at the presser by Maine state lawmaker Rep. Laurel Libby (R), female fencer <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/female-fencer-speaks-out-after-shes-expelled-for-protesting-male-opponent" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stephanie Turner</a>, female rights advocate Riley Gaines, numerous female athletes from Maine, and others.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
NEW: <a href="https://twitter.com/AGPamBondi?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AGPamBondi</a> announces a civil lawsuit against Maine for refusing to protect women and women’s sports and spaces. <a href="https://t.co/6q0jtXkJwO">pic.twitter.com/6q0jtXkJwO</a>
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) <a href="https://twitter.com/MaryMargOlohan/status/1912483114351317390?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
A copy of the lawsuit, which was obtained by Daily Wire reporter Mary Margaret Olohan, says the United States is suing Maine over its Department of Education &#8220;openly and defiantly flouting federal anti-discrimination law by enforcing policies that require girls to compete against boys in athletic competitions designed exclusively for girls.&#8221;
The suit is seeking to get Maine to stop its noncompliance with federal law and also seeks to grant females who were passed over by males their appropriate awards.
Bondi also said the department is looking at possibly retroactively pulling funding the state of Maine received for not complying in the past.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none">
a case of FAFO: <a href="https://t.co/fYRF6El4Kg">pic.twitter.com/fYRF6El4Kg</a>
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) <a href="https://twitter.com/MaryMargOlohan/status/1912484747726512273?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
During the presser, Bondi cited a male athlete taking first place in a state final for girls&#8217; pole vaulting, which was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/boy-wins-girls-pole-vault-championship-in-maine-days-after-state-pledged-to-defy-trump-order" target="_blank" rel="noopener">first reported by The Daily Wire</a>. &#8220;He beat every female by a significant margin, qualifying him for regional championships. That took a spot away from a young woman,&#8221; Bondi said.
Last year, another male athlete competed in female ski and cross-country races in Maine and finished first in the women&#8217;s 5k. His time would have placed him 43rd if he were competing with fellow males, a DOJ press release said.
Gaines, who spoke at the presser, thanked President Donald Trump for protecting girls and said, &#8220;Accountability is back in the White House.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/Riley_Gaines_?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Riley_Gaines_</a>, speaking at DOJ, details all the ways women have been harmed by men in their spaces — and censored for speaking out.
These abuses aren’t happening in Afghanistan or the UK, she says. They’re happening in the USA.
“Accountability is back in the White House.” <a href="https://t.co/CAAlYUj4gc">pic.twitter.com/CAAlYUj4gc</a>
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) <a href="https://twitter.com/MaryMargOlohan/status/1912487694397059358?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
In February, Maine’s Democratic Governor Janet Mills got into a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-spars-with-maines-dem-governor-over-men-in-womens-sports-at-white-house" target="_blank" rel="noopener">public spat with President Trump</a> when she refused to comply with the president’s order barring males from girls’ sports, <a href="https://x.com/TheMaineWire/status/1904334942999363625" target="_blank" rel="noopener">arguing</a> that she was following state law.
Subsequently, numerous Maine officials and organizations followed Mills&#8217; lead and refused to comply with Title IX, sparking numerous investigations and rule violation findings.
Notably, it was found that the state also placed a convicted male murderer who identifies as female into a female correctional facility.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-trump-trans-athletes-womens-sports-maine" target="_blank" rel="noopener">EXCLUSIVE POLL: Maine Voters Side With Trump On Keeping Men Out Of Women’s Sports</a>

Pam Bondi, Janet Mills

Bondi Unleashes On Maine, Announces New Lawsuit Against State For Violating Title IX

Department of Justice

Maine

Pam Bondi

Riley Gaines

Title IX

The Department of Education has referred its investigation into the alleged Title IX violations of Maine to the Department of Justice.
The Education Department announced the referral on Friday, less than two months after President Donald Trump and Democratic Maine Governor Janet Mills had a fiery <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-white-house-says-top-staffer-for-maines-gov-had-meltdown-cursed-at-official-over-men-in-womens-sports" target="_blank" rel="noopener">exchange</a> at the White House over males participating in female sports.
“The Department has given Maine every opportunity to come into compliance with Title IX, but the state’s leaders have stubbornly refused to do so, choosing instead to prioritize an extremist ideological agenda over their students’ safety, privacy, and dignity,” said acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor in a statement.
“The Maine Department of Education will now have to defend its discriminatory practices before a Department administrative law judge and in a federal court against the Justice Department. Governor Mills would have done well to adhere to the wisdom embedded in the old idiom — be careful what you wish for,” continued Trainor. “Now she will see the Trump Administration in court.”
The Education Department plans to move forward with restricting federal taxpayer funds to Maine’s Department of Education, according to the statement.
The Trump administration has investigated Maine for weeks over the state’s policies allowing transgender-identifying athletes to participate in female sports. The administration has said that Maine’s policies violate Title IX rules against gender discrimination.
The Trump administration’s latest move against Maine came after state officials refused to sign a resolution agreement with the federal government.
“Nothing in Title IX or its implementing regulations prohibits schools from allowing transgender girls and women to participate on girls’ and women’s sports teams,” Maine Assistant Attorney General Sarah Forster said in a letter, according to <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/trump-admin-moves-withhold-federal-funds-maine-trans/story?id=120731338" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ABC News</a>. “Your letters to date do not cite a single case that so holds. To the contrary, various federal courts have held that Title IX and/or the Equal Protection Clause require schools to allow such participation.”
On Friday evening, a federal judge blocked a spending freeze already initiated on funds to Maine from the Department of Agriculture. U.S. District Court Judge John Woodcock Jr. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/federal-judge-blocks-trump-from-freezing-funding-to-maine-over-men-in-womens-sports" target="_blank" rel="noopener">issued</a> the injunction, temporarily restoring lost funds to the state.
Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, known for her centrist record among Republicans, sided with the Trump administration on Friday and urged Mills to change course.
“People who are transgender deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. But that does not change the fact that Title IX mandated equal access to athletic resources and facilities on the basis of sex – not on the basis of gender identity. Safe and fair athletic competition has been one of the keys to the success of Title IX,” Collins said in a statement. “While I will continue to advocate strongly for federal funding for Maine, I disagree with the state’s position and instead support the original intent behind Title IX.”

Janet Mills

Trump Sics His DOJ On Maine Over Men In Women’s Sports

Department of Education

Executive

A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from pausing federal taxpayer money to Maine.
U.S. District Court Judge John Woodcock Jr. on Friday granted a request for an emergency stay from the state, placing the Trump administration’s financial pressure on hold. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) had frozen funds to the state over its policies allowing for males to compete in female sports.
“During the pendency of this Temporary Restraining Order, the United States Department of Agriculture and Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins must immediately unfreeze and release to the state of Maine any federal funding that they have frozen or failed or refused to pay because of the state of Maine’s alleged failure to comply with the requirements of Title IX,” Woodcock <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.med.67828/gov.uscourts.med.67828.12.0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a>.
The White House has threatened and cut federal funding to Maine and accused the state of violating Title IX, which prohibits discrimination based on sex and outlines policies against sexual harassment at educational programs that accept federal funding.
The feud between Washington and Augusta has split Maine politicians. Republican Sen. Susan Collins posted a statement on social media on Friday urging the state to revise its policies around transgender-identifying players in female sports.
“The conflict between how the State of Maine and the Administration interpret Title IX needs to be resolved. I agree with the federal government’s position that biological males should not compete in girls and women’s athletics. Policies to the contrary violate the original intent behind Title IX,” Collins said.
“People who are transgender deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. But that does not change the fact that Title IX mandated equal access to athletic resources and facilities on the basis of sex – not on the basis of gender identity. Safe and fair athletic competition has been one of the keys to the success of Title IX,” she continued. “While I will continue to advocate strongly for federal funding for Maine, I disagree with the state’s position and instead support the original intent behind Title IX.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The conflict between how the State of Maine and the Administration interpret Title IX needs to be resolved. I agree with the federal government’s position that biological males should not compete in girls and women’s athletics. Policies to the contrary violate the original…
— Sen. Susan Collins (@SenatorCollins) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorCollins/status/1910814398295531606?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 11, 2025</a></blockquote>
Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey <a href="https://www.maine.gov/ag/news/article.shtml?id=13170752" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> Woodcock’s order “confirms the Trump Administration did not follow the rule of law” in rescinding taxpayer funding to Maine.

Donald Trump

Federal Judge Blocks Trump From Freezing Funding To Maine Over Men In Women’s Sports

Trump Administration

USDA

Somehow, John Oliver from HBO — who did an entire monologue this week about why men who want to play with ladies in sports should be allowed to do so — still has a show.
I don&#8217;t know why we gave him citizenship. I don&#8217;t know what he added to the country except for being obnoxiously smarmy with a British accent.
The other night he delivered one of the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flSS1tjoxf0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dumbest monologues</a> I&#8217;ve ever heard.
John Oliver is so trapped inside the Left-wing echo chamber that he actually believes it&#8217;s necessary for him to defend the idea that men should punch women in a boxing ring, that “trans athletes” must be allowed to play with members of the opposite biological sex.
In order to make this claim, he somehow has to square the circle of pretending that men playing with women is not unfair to the women, which means he now has to pretend that men are not better at sports than women.
He bloviated:
<blockquote>When it comes to trans athletes who&#8217;ve medically transitioned, studies of cis athletes are not necessarily relevant. A lot of medical, gender-affirming treatments like hormone therapy have a meaningful impact on body and hormone composition. So the question then becomes, what do those impacts mean for athletic performance? We spoke to scientists on all sides of this issue, and the one thing they actually agree on is that, in part, because the number of trans athletes is so small, the body of research specifically about them is extremely limited.</blockquote>
This is amazing. He is essentially saying, “We can&#8217;t look at studies that say that men are stronger than women because we&#8217;re now talking about men who have had a bunch of hormone treatments. So we don&#8217;t know. And so we have to look at the studies of men who have had hormones. But there are no studies. Therefore, men who have hormone treatments don&#8217;t have any sort of excess abilities over women. Therefore, they should be allowed to play with women.”
This is a classic in the genre of &#8220;absence of evidence does not equal evidence of absence.&#8221; In other words, absence of evidence that men with hormone treatments have an advantage over women does not mean evidence of absence of that advantage.
This is a classic logical fallacy in which he is engaging: “We can&#8217;t look at these studies that say that men are stronger than women, we have to look at the non-existent studies. But those studies don&#8217;t exist, and therefore men don&#8217;t have an advantage over women.”
That is not how logic works. 
He continued: 
<blockquote>There are a bunch of studies comparing specific anatomical features like muscle mass in women who transition but which don&#8217;t directly speak to their impact on athletic performance. But we were only able to find 12 studies that actually tested trans adult women&#8217;s physical fitness in a lab or other performance scenario. Eight have a sample size of less than 20. And two are the single athlete. And look, I don&#8217;t have any scientific experience, even though I look like a cross between a scientist and the profoundly sick mice he&#8217;s studying. But you probably shouldn&#8217;t draw broad conclusions of a sample size of one. Those 12 studies generally find that medically transitioning does impact trans women&#8217;s performance, but disagree on how or by how much.</blockquote>
This is hilarious. He&#8217;s laying out a bunch of studies that don&#8217;t support his own position, but then he&#8217;s dismissing the studies because the sample size is too small. So he&#8217;s literally cited zero evidence for his proposition so far, and somehow he&#8217;s going to magically transform that into the idea that men playing against women is somehow fair. 
He continued:
<blockquote>That research you saw earlier actually published the only longitudinal study to date of multiple athletes studying the impact of transitioning on eight long-distance runners. She found after at least a year on hormone therapy their race times turned out to be more athletically, similar to those of cisgender women than cisgender men. But she herself will tell you the study was limited and its conclusions were nuanced. Here she is explaining what we do and don&#8217;t know at this point: “It is undoubtedly true that trans women will maintain advantages in some sports, probably not so much in endurance sports, but in size and strength sports. Trans women will also have some physiological disadvantages. Our larger frames are now being powered by reduced muscle mass and reduced aerobic capacity, and that can lead to disadvantages in terms of like quickness, recovery, endurance, things that maybe aren&#8217;t quite as obvious as being bigger and stronger” Right. Bigger and stronger bodies are not automatically advantaged in every scenario.  </blockquote>
He still provided no evidence to the proposition that it&#8217;s fair for men to play with the ladies. We should point out that the expert he is citing is a former man, a person named Joanna Harper. Joanna Harper transitioned to female in 2004-2005. Joanna Harper is in his 60s and he cites his proudest athletic achievement as running 2:23 marathon as a young man. And that&#8217;s the person who&#8217;s being cited as the unbiased source on trans athletes in opposite sex sports.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/bss-ep-2177-member-exclusive?elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=The+Ben+Shapiro+Show&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Carousel" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: The Ben Shapiro Show</a></h3>
Does this lead Oliver anywhere? Nope.
He continues to argue, based on no evidence, that it&#8217;s totally fair for men to play with the ladies, because he says so. After having come up with zero evidence for the proposition that it&#8217;s fair for men to play with the women, he then says it shouldn&#8217;t be an issue anyway, because no man is transitioning just to play with the women. 
That’s weird because there actually are a bunch of men who are transitioning and playing with the women. Not that they wouldn&#8217;t do hormone treatments and surgery in the absence of playing athletics, but — they seem to really want to play with the ladies. They could continue to race with the men, but they would lose.
You don&#8217;t see a lot of women who are transitioning into “men” who are desperate to play with the men. You don&#8217;t see a lot of women who say, “I&#8217;m cutting off my breasts and I&#8217;m having a fake penis attached and now I want to box the men.” It never happens. I wonder why?
Then John Oliver moved away from his zero evidence to this proposition: Why are you even noticing? Why do you even care? Sure, there are people doing this, but they&#8217;re not doing it because they want to beat up on the women. What does that matter to the women? Why should the women care about the motivation for why a gigantic man like Lia Thomas is now racing against Riley Gaines?
Why should Riley Gaines care what the motivation is? I’ll tell this clown why: She now has to race against a dude who was a low-ranked male swimmer but blows the other women out of the water because he’s a dude. 
<blockquote>The thing is, hypotheticals like that, circulate constantly and often center around someone transitioning solely to gain a competitive advantage. But as this trans researcher points out, that is an absurd proposition. </blockquote>
He then showed Harper stating, “Trans women don&#8217;t transition for sports. No one has ever said, &#8216;Yeah, I think I&#8217;d like to be a woman so I can do well in women&#8217;s sports.’ When you go through a gender transition, you lose so many things in life. My own mother said she never wanted to speak to me again. You know, I lost friends, family got divorced. You&#8217;d go through all of that just to win a medal in sports? No. Trans people transition because it&#8217;s the only way that we can live happily.” 
Oliver replied:
<blockquote>Right. No one says I&#8217;m going to transition just for the sake of sports. The same way no one says, “Could you please send me more messages about two factor authentication?&#8221; Or “when I walk down the aisle, I&#8217;d like a solo violin cover of Bawitdaba by Kid Rock.” That is just a made-up person. </blockquote>
Who cares? Who cares about the motivation of the person who wants to play with the ladies? You can have two different motivations, a motivation to add some fake boobs and cut off your penis, and a very different motivation: wanting to play with the ladies now that you are bigger and stronger than all the ladies. It doesn&#8217;t have to be the same motivation.
He&#8217;s silly and reductive. “Silly and Reductive” should be the name of John Oliver’s show. 
<blockquote>The underlying premise of that question from the world&#8217;s most famous sports cheater that those assigned male at birth are automatically going to have certain immutable physical advantages, that gets raised constantly, which is why we&#8217;re going to spend most of our time talking about trans women and girls, even though in these five states (Alabama, Missouri, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas) these bans impact trans boys in schools, too. 
It is obviously true that on average cisgender men and post-pubescent boys have some specific athletic performance advantages, though the relative size of that advantage also depends on the sport and the event in swimming. For instance, my life size and performance advantage is roughly 13% in the 50 meter freestyle, but less than 6% in the 1500 meter free, which is still clearly significant but in general, there’s a lot of overlap in the average performance ranges of men and women.
Basically, it is not the case that any man is going to be stronger or more athletic than every woman, which is sometimes what gets implied here. </blockquote>
That wasn&#8217;t the argument. What gets implied is that if you are looking at the ends of the bell curve — which is where top athletic performance happens, the end of bell curve, not the average — if you have men who have transitioned into women at the end of the bell curve, they are almost always going to outcompete women because they&#8217;re at the end of the bell curve.
By the way, you can make this dumb argument about anything. Why should we have age ranges in sports? Seriously. Why not have a bunch of 12-year-old Little Leaguers play the Major Leaguers in baseball? Every so often you might have a 12-year-old who is huge, a gigantic 12-year-old kid who can actually hit the ball. 
What the hell, if the bell curves overlap at all, then probably we should just get rid of the categories entirely.
We should do this with everything. It makes perfect sense to Oliver.
Or maybe what Oliver is saying is just stupid.
He got mad at House Speaker Mike Johnson because he cited Scripture to the effect that men and women exist.
You don&#8217;t have to quote Scripture that men and women exist to know it, but Scripture does say it, and Scripture has a much better record than John Oliver and his stupid glasses.
Oliver mocked the Bible, saying:
<blockquote>It is not just about denying trans women the right to play. It&#8217;s about denying them the right to exist. Mike Johnson basically said as much of the House passed its ban on trans athletes when he said this. We know from Scripture and from nature that men are men and women are women, and men cannot become women. That&#8217;s right, Mike. As Scripture tells us, man are man and women are women and God is his own son and some mothers are virgins and some mothers-in-law are pillars of salt, and some daughters are sex partners and colorful coats are dream-tellers and brothers are murderers, but also brothers are back-up husbands for wives and babies can be for splitting in half and water is wine &#8230; </blockquote>
You’ll notice that he completely elided Speaker Johnson&#8217;s statement adding “and Nature.” Johnson’s saying, “For those who believe in the Bible, Bible, the Bible says this, and for those who don&#8217;t, there&#8217;s a thing called Nature,” which Oliver is ignoring.
But then he does get to dunk with his peculiarly simplistic read on the Bible, which I&#8217;m sure has made him a very happy person, deliberately misinterpreting Biblical scripture and religious beliefs.
That particular argument isn&#8217;t played out at all, making fun of miracle stories in the Bible. No one&#8217;s ever tried that before.
John Oliver is clearly not the brightest bulb in the basket. And  somehow he parlayed his shtick into an American citizenship without having to pay President Trump $5 million.
But he’s still a moron.

Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen – Season 22

John Oliver, Moron

Ben Shapiro

Comedy

Entertainment

Gender

John Oliver

Opinion

Two trans-identifying individuals &#8212; men who identify as women &#8212; faced off against each other in a women’s pool championship match over the weekend.
Harriet Haynes and Lucy Smith made it to the final showdown for the championship title at the Ultimate Pool Women&#8217;s Pro Series Event 2 on Sunday in Wigan in the United Kingdom. Haynes went on to defeat Smith 8-6. Each beat out four female opponents to secure their spots in the finals.
Former U.S. college swimmer Riley Gaines, who rose to national prominence by taking a stand against men infiltrating women’s sports, reacted to the story by saying, &#8220;A real life South Park episode.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
A real life South Park episode <a href="https://t.co/xOSNt945uJ">https://t.co/xOSNt945uJ</a>
&mdash; Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) <a href="https://twitter.com/Riley_Gaines_/status/1908973764706218042?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 6, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Haynes has not yet publicly commented on this event, but in December, he <a href="https://www.the-independent.com/news/uk/home-news/transgender-pool-player-harriet-haynes-ban-b2653361.html">told</a> The Independent that pool &#8220;isn&#8217;t a gender-affected sport,” claiming as a biological male he had &#8220;no advantage.&#8221;
&#8220;We&#8217;re not talking about boxing or golf—we&#8217;re talking about pool,&#8221; Haynes said at the time.
Some factors which critics say can affect a woman’s ability to compete against a man in pool include a man’s greater upper body strength, greater height, larger hand size, and longer reach. Professional level pool competitions are generally split between men and women.
Per <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/snooker/2025/04/07/womens-pool-final-two-transgender-athletes/">The Telegraph</a>, competitive pool player Lynne Pinches was allegedly asked to leave this year’s competition where she was observing as a spectator. She <a href="https://x.com/PinchesLynne/status/1909143922246287454">stated</a> that Haynes’ romantic partner complained she was there and had her thrown out.
Pinches dropped out of the Women’s Champion of Champions final against Haynes in 2023, which led to Haynes winning the event.
Pinches discussed the disadvantage female athletes have competing against trans-identifying men during a conversation with TalkTV. She said, “Whenever you play a transgender player, even if you win, it doesn’t make any difference because, in your heart, you know it’s unfair. This is a category advantage. Being biologically male and playing against females gives you a clear category advantage.”
She continued, “Every time I play a transgender player, I think about it before, during and after the match, about how unfair it is and how this is a level I can’t reach. I watch some of the shots they play, and I think females don’t play these shots down the rails like this and they don’t clear up like this. They [trans women] have a longer reach and a lot of them are taller than us.”
“Women have been silenced because of fear of being transphobic,” Pinches added. “That is why people don’t speak out about this subject. It’s not a gender issue. This is a fairness issue.”

pool

Pool Competition Ends With Trans-On-Trans Final After Two Men Beat All The Women

United Kingdom

World

A high school-aged transgender-identifying track athlete reportedly came in last place against junior varsity boys two years before switching to compete against varsity girls and taking home first place.
Zachary Rose, who now identifies as Lia Rose, formerly competed against boys at Ida B. Wells High School in Portland, Oregon, according to a New York Post <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/04/05/us-news/trans-track-athlete-wins-varsity-girls-competition-after-previously-placing-last-against-jv-boys-report/?utm_source=twitter&amp;utm_campaign=nypost&amp;utm_medium=social" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a>. But after switching to girls&#8217; varsity, Rose recently won the high jump at the Portland Interscholastic League Varsity Relays with a height of 4 feet, 8 inches. The athlete bested the girls in the competition by at least two inches.
<a href="https://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/meet/486070/results/m/2/hj" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Citing</a> athletic.net, the Post noted that Rose, while competing on boys JV track in 2023, finished dead last with a jump of 4 feet, 6 inches.
Rose competed against males in 2024, too, before apparently switching to compete against girls.
Despite proponents of boys in girls&#8217; sports <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/michael-knowles-faces-25-lgbt-activists-on-surrounded" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suggesting</a> it&#8217;s exceedingly rare that trans-identifying athletes are taking opportunities and trophies from girls, these events are becoming more and more common. And in turn, females are refusing to compete in protest, citing safety and fairness.
As <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/video-female-fencer-booted-from-tournament-after-refusing-to-compete-against-male-opponent?row=0&amp;elementPosition=6&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;title=VIDEO%3A+Female+Fencer+Booted+From+Tournament+After+Refusing+To+Compete+Against+Male+Opponent&amp;category=News" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Wire</a> reported this week, a female fencer was recently disqualified from a tournament in Maryland after she took a knee and refused to compete against a transgender-identifying male opponent.
Redmond Sullivan, who is male and identifies as transgender, was allowed to participate in the female tournament per USA Fencing rules, the organization confirmed to The Daily Wire. Sullivan formerly competed with males, but quickly won the top prize at Connecticut Division Junior Olympic Qualifiers last year after switching to female fencing, <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14186601/Trans-fencer-switches-womens-team-gold-wagner-college.html?ns_mchannel=rss&amp;ns_campaign=1490&amp;ito=social-facebook-wdijw&amp;fbclid=IwY2xjawJafzFleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHaQlJ1A_qym2V8T7bzoQt6jecrt0xp39hJDg6FYgi69AMyCu-sRsXJxi5Q_aem_6G9JoKpTjr2OsHFEqtcb8w" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Daily Mail.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🤺🚨Historic Protest: Female Fencer Takes a Knee in Bout Against Male Opponent, Faces Immediate Disqualification
After receiving a black card for refusing to compete against a man, Redmond Sullivan&#8217;s female opponent was expelled from the <a href="https://twitter.com/USAFencing?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@USAFencing</a> event at the Univ. of… <a href="https://t.co/IloSnrb2Iu">pic.twitter.com/IloSnrb2Iu</a>
— ICONS (@icons_women) <a href="https://twitter.com/icons_women/status/1907487751664247154?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 2, 2025</a></blockquote>
In another recent example highlighted by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/most-likely-ended-my-career-disc-golfer-who-protested-trans-competitor-says-she-has-no-regrets?row=0&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;author=Mairead+Elordi&amp;title=‘Most+Likely+Ended+My+Career’%3A+Disc+Golfer+Who+Protested+Trans+Competitor+Says+She+Has+No+Regrets&amp;category=News" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Wire</a>, a female professional disc golf athlete walked off the course during a Nashville competition over her concerns about a trans-identifying male player.
“Females must be protected in our division,” Abigail Wilson said as she walked away from the course. “This is unfair. I refuse to play.”
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/most-likely-ended-my-career-disc-golfer-who-protested-trans-competitor-says-she-has-no-regrets?row=0&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;author=Mairead+Elordi&amp;title=‘Most+Likely+Ended+My+Career’%3A+Disc+Golfer+Who+Protested+Trans+Competitor+Says+She+Has+No+Regrets&amp;category=News" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘Most Likely Ended My Career’: Disc Golfer Who Protested Trans Competitor Says She Has No Regrets</a>

Running Track

After Poor Showing On Boys Team, Male Switches To Girls Varsity And Takes First

After Poor Showing On Boys’ Team, Male Switches To Girls Varsity And Takes First

Oregon

The Washington Post ran a glowing profile of a trans-identifying male athlete on Thursday, framed around President Donald Trump&#8217;s recent order barring males from competing in women&#8217;s high school and collegiate sports, in an effort to prove that biological males have no advantage.
The <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2025/04/03/trans-athlete-competes-with-boys/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">article</a> began with trans-identifying Eliza Munshi preparing for the first track meet of the season at Falls Church, Virginia, debating the merits of one French-braid or two and applying glitter along curled eyelashes. Munshi, WaPo lamented, was forced to compete with the boys because of Trump&#8217;s order.
&#8220;She wasn’t going to let the president’s executive order stop her. So when it was finally her turn at the meet, Eliza stepped into the circle as part of the boys’ team. She wound up and let the discus fly,&#8221; the article read.
Munshi&#8217;s throws landed at 43 feet 2 inches, and 41 feet 4 inches, and 46 feet 10 inches — and the article was quick to point out just how far short they fell of the 74 foot, 6 inch average notched by the other males at the same meet. The author did not include any information about the average throws made by the girls&#8217; team.
&#8220;She didn’t think she had an advantage against the girls. She certainly wouldn’t have one over the boys, most of whom are bigger than she is,&#8221; the article continued, painting Munshi as a hero who voluntarily competed in the correct gender group — despite a personal disadvantage — because not doing so could result in the entire team facing disqualification. &#8220;In fact, she knew it would be harder. The boys’ discus weighs about 3.5 pounds, almost a pound heavier than that of the girls. The boys’ shot is 12 pounds, and the girls’ is about 8.&#8221;
Between the paragraphs fawning over Munshi and the broad support offered by family members and classmates alike, WaPo threw in another jab at those who oppose allowing males to play in girls&#8217; and women&#8217;s athletic divisions:
<blockquote>Yet, trans athletes are rare. In Virginia, only 31 athletes have petitioned to play since 2020. Twenty-eight were approved. But those supporting bans believe transgender girls have an unfair advantage over cisgender girls. And public support for that sentiment is growing. A 2022 <a class="js-itid-click" href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2023/05/05/trans-poll-gop-politics-laws/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Washington Post-KFF poll</a> found that two-thirds of Americans agreed that trans girls should not be allowed to play girls’ high school sports.</blockquote>
But while Munshi may indeed be an outlier, Falls Church High School&#8217;s own publicly available <a href="https://www.athletic.net/trackandfield/SchoolRecords.aspx?SchoolID=3712" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Track &amp; Field records</a> show a clear disparity between male and female athletes. In the shot put and discus events alone, the disparities begin with the fact that the males throw heavier weights — and end with the dramatic difference in the distances they are able to throw those weights.
Girls throw a 1kg discus (2.2 lbs), for example, and the top throws listed range from 57&#8242; 1&#8243; to 90&#8242; 9&#8243; — while the boys throw a 1.6kg discus (3.5 lbs) and the top throws range from 91&#8242; 11&#8243; to 149&#8242; 5&#8243;. In the shot put, girls throw 4 kg (8.8 lbs) for distances of 22&#8242; 2&#8243; to 30&#8242; 9.5&#8243; — while the boys can throw either 12 lbs (35&#8242; 7&#8243; to 50&#8242; 11.25&#8243;) or 16 lbs (39&#8242; 1&#8243; to 44&#8242; 5&#8243;).

VATRANSATHLETE

WaPo Runs Glowing Profile Of Trans-Identifying Athlete To ‘Prove’ There’s No Biological Advantage

WaPo Runs Glowing Profile Of Trans-Identifying Athlete To 'Prove' There's No Biological Advantage

Media

Men and women are different. This biological reality was once universally understood. Now, however, radical activists are trying to bully women into believing that merely a public declaration of your gender makes you a woman. Thankfully, we are coming to a tipping point. More and more brave, strong, authentic women are rising to the bizarre challenge of our day.
Women like <a href="https://x.com/i/trending/1907525406108098676" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stephanie Turner</a>. At a collegiate fencing competition last weekend, she removed her mask and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/video-female-fencer-booted-from-tournament-after-refusing-to-compete-against-male-opponent" target="_blank" rel="noopener">took a knee</a> before her bout, refusing to compete against a male who had competed on the men’s team just a year earlier. USA Fencing responded by immediately disqualifying and expelling Turner from the tournament. Turner’s decision to stand up and publicly shoulder this fight required immense strength. Strength that her male counterpart didn’t possess, or he’d still be training to succeed is his own division.
It’s the same kind of strength Maine Representative Laurel Libby showed when she <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/i-will-not-be-silenced-democrats-censure-maines-laurel-libby-for-calling-out-trans-sports-policy?row=0&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;title=%E2%80%98I+Will+Not+Be+Silenced%E2%80%99%3A+Democrats+Censure+Maine%E2%80%99s+Laurel+Libby+For+Calling+Out+Trans+Sports+Policy&amp;category=News" target="_blank" rel="noopener">spoke out</a> against the injustice of a biological male student dominating girls’ pole vault at the Maine State Class B Championship. The student had previously placed fifth in the boys’ division just one year before. Like Turner, Libby’s refusal to go along with the gender activists’ takeover was met with punishment. When she tried to defend herself, the male Democratic Speaker of the House, Ryan Fecteau, cut her microphone and shut down the live feed. Libby stood before the dais with a stoic strength. Strength her male Democratic counterpart didn’t possess, or he’d be able to defend his position on the merits.
Oddly, the same people who silenced Laurel Libby, who disqualified Stephanie Turner, who took a medal from Riley Gaines, and who named MJ Rodriguez “woman of the year,” are the same individuals who scream about feminism. These are the same “feminists” who think my daughters should change their swimsuits beside men at the YMCA.
To the “feminists” who cannot define a woman, anyone can be a woman, so everyone is a woman. Those who don’t nod their head, put pronouns in the email signature, and quietly follow along are bullied like the women above.
Thankfully, Turner and Libby aren’t so easily intimidated. They add their names to a growing list of strong women undeterred by the powerful forces who seek to take their voices away. Each woman who stands up makes a difference, especially for the generation of girls behind them. Though these brave acts may seem small in isolation, together they cannot and will not be ignored.
Turner and Libby are two women at the forefront of a fight that should have never needed to be fought. It’s a sad reality that defending the very concept of womanhood has become a radical act, but it is that radical act by these women who are inspiring others to stand up unapologetically and demand girls’ spaces be returned to them. And parents, we must continue to do our part in our towns, schools, and local sports leagues.
Girls’ spaces should be sacred, and their rights should not be subject to ideological whims. We must ensure that the next generation of girls grow up knowing they deserve a world where they are protected and respected.
While this fight is far from over, these women have set the stage for the movement afoot to take hold. Parents across the country are stepping forward at school board meetings and standing up to the governing boards of local sports leagues. We must continue to harness this momentum to protect our daughters and reaffirm the biological reality that somehow slipped from the cultural collective sense.
* * *
Alleigh Marré is the Executive Director of the American Parents Coalition and a mother of four.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

MixCollage-04-Apr-2025-12-34-PM-9888

Why Protecting Girls’ Spaces Should Never Be Up For Debate

Why Protecting Girls' Spaces Should Never Be Up For Debate

Feminism

<a href="https://www.usafencing.org/damien-lehfeldt" target="_blank" rel="noopener">USA Fencing Chair Damien Lehfeldt</a> two years ago published a lengthy pro-transgender manifesto, which was flagged by a source to The Daily Wire following the athletic organization&#8217;s decision to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/video-female-fencer-booted-from-tournament-after-refusing-to-compete-against-male-opponent?row=0&amp;elementPosition=3&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;title=VIDEO%3A+Female+Fencer+Booted+From+Tournament+After+Refusing+To+Compete+Against+Male+Opponent&amp;category=News" target="_blank" rel="noopener">disqualify a female fencer</a> from a tournament for refusing to compete against a transgender-identifying male opponent.
Lehfeldt, who calls himself &#8220;the fencing coach,&#8221; published a lengthy blog post on August 30, 2023, outlining why he wants male transgender-identifying athletes to compete against females.
<div id="attachment_902779" style="width: 834px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-902779" class="wp-image-902779 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.22-PM-824x576.png" alt="" width="824" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.22-PM-824x576.png 824w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.22-PM-300x210.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.22-PM-768x537.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.22-PM-1536x1073.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.22-PM-2048x1431.png 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 824px) 100vw, 824px" />Screenshot: TheFencingCoach.com</div>
The post claims that &#8220;transgender women are women&#8221; and that &#8220;no&#8221; athlete &#8220;transitions with the intention of gaining a physical advantage over their cisgender peers.&#8221;
Lehfeldt also explains that if his daughter has to one day fence against a male who claims to be female, he would hope his daughter &#8220;doesn’t care about the outcome and that both she and her opponent simply enjoyed the bout.&#8221;
At the outset of the blog, Lehfeldt outlined his &#8220;beliefs&#8221; about the issue:
<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Transgender women are women and gender is not sex.</li>
<li>Transgender fencers deserve the right to compete with the gender they identify with, and those of adult age should comply with the competition guidelines and regulations outlined by USA Fencing and the IOC—even if the science [of] those IOC guidelines might be imperfect.</li>
<li>A separate division denies them their truth to compete as their authentic selves and is antithetical to USA Fencing’s Diversity and Inclusion (D&amp;I) vision.</li>
<li>There is a possibility that transgender women have a physical advantage over their cisgender opponents after transitioning. There is also a possibility they do not. In Fencing, there is no data to support either viewpoint.</li>
<li>Giving athletes a sense of belonging and a will to live is more powerful than medals and competitive glory.</li>
</ul>
<div id="attachment_902781" style="width: 925px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-902781" class="wp-image-902781 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.31-PM-915x576.png" alt="" width="915" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.31-PM-915x576.png 915w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.31-PM-300x189.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.31-PM-768x484.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.31-PM-1536x967.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.31-PM.png 1734w" sizes="(max-width: 915px) 100vw, 915px" />Screenshot: TheFencingCoach.com</div>
Lehfeldt then discussed how someone he knew &#8220;transitioned&#8221; from male to female and became &#8220;her authentic self.&#8221;
&#8220;She wasn’t a boy afraid of his own shadow anymore, but a confident, strong young woman who suddenly was who she was always meant to be. She was her authentic self,&#8221; he wrote. &#8220;The moment he became Rhonda, the lie was gone and she was…happy.&#8221;
Citing a research article, Lehfeldt claimed that allowing males in girls&#8217; sports &#8220;can be lifesaving.&#8221;
&#8220;Despite these benefits, 22 state legislatures have banned transgender participation in sport and sought to bar these at-risk youths from the field of play,&#8221; he wrote, adding with emphasis, &#8220;And to me, such bans are just as insidious as bans of cisgender women.&#8221;
&#8220;I’ll be the first to admit that maybe ten years ago, I didn’t understand this topic,&#8221; the post continued. &#8220;I would have told you that gender was binary. I would have said: you’re born a man or a woman and your sex at birth is what you are. The science on the topic has evolved, and the science on the topic is still evolving.&#8221;
Lehfeldt admitted that male athletes &#8220;may&#8221; have a physical advantage over females, even post-&#8220;transition,&#8221; but dismissed concerns about fairness.
&#8220;The first principle of trans participation one must accept, is that no one transitions with the intention of gaining a physical advantage over their cisgender peers,&#8221; Lehfeldt wrote (emphasis his own).
<div id="attachment_902783" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-902783" class="wp-image-902783 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.40-PM-1024x536.png" alt="" width="1024" height="536" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.40-PM-1024x536.png 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.40-PM-300x157.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.40-PM-768x402.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.40-PM-1536x803.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.40-PM.png 1828w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Screenshot: TheFencingCoach.com</div>
&#8220;One day, my daughter may compete against a transgender woman,&#8221; he said. &#8220;She might win. She might lose. I hope I’ve done a good enough job articulating the depth of the issue, that she doesn’t care about the outcome and that both she and her opponent simply enjoyed the bout.&#8221;
&#8220;I hope she understands that the young lady she competed with might not be with us in this world if she was forced to live a lie in a gender she didn’t identify with,&#8221; Lehfeldt added. &#8220;And I hope, by the time my daughter is old enough to compete, this topic won’t be as faux-pas and divisive as it is in the present.&#8221;
<div id="attachment_902789" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-902789" class="wp-image-902789 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.50-PM-1024x340.png" alt="" width="1024" height="340" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.50-PM-1024x340.png 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.50-PM-300x100.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.50-PM-768x255.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.50-PM-1536x510.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.50-PM.png 1658w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Screenshot: TheFencingCoach.com</div>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/video-female-fencer-booted-from-tournament-after-refusing-to-compete-against-male-opponent?row=0&amp;elementPosition=3&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;title=VIDEO%3A+Female+Fencer+Booted+From+Tournament+After+Refusing+To+Compete+Against+Male+Opponent&amp;category=News" target="_blank" rel="noopener">VIDEO: Female Fencer Booted From Tournament After Refusing To Compete Against Male Opponent</a>

Damien Lehfeldt

USA Fencing Chair’s Pro-Trans Manifesto Surfaces After Woman DQed For Refusing To Fence Male

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