ADF is also representing four female athletes in their case against Connecticut’s transgender sports policy. The state, beginning in 2017, allowed students to participate in sports based on their gender identity and not biological sex. A federal judge dismissed the Title IX case this week, which ADF is appealing.
“We have seen increasing examples across the country of males dominating girls’ athletic competitions when competing as females, capturing championships and shattering long-standing female track records,” Holcomb said.
“Comparably fit and trained males will always have physical advantages over females—that’s the reason we have girls’ sports. When we ignore biological reality, female athletes lose medals, podium spots, public recognition, and opportunities to compete,” she said.
Other states have enacted laws similar to West Virginia’s, or are considering such laws, including Idaho, Mississippi, and Arkansas. Other state governors have vetoed similar bills passed by state legislatures, such as in Kansas and South Dakota. Gov. Kristi Noem (R) of South Dakota later issued an executive order saying that only biological women should play women’s sports, after she was criticized by ADF for her veto of a transgender sports bill.
On Wednesday, the Florida legislature passed a bill limiting participation in single-sex sports to people of that biological sex.
On April 12, the board of governors for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) issued a statement in support of athletes identifying as transgender.