US Supreme Court moves to uphold Trump-backed ban on trans women in female sport
Idaho became the first state to implement a ban on transgender athletes competing in women’s and girls’ in 2020, followed by West Virginia a year later
By Aaron Sugg
A majority of the US Supreme Court justices are to uphold state laws banning transgender women and girls from competing in female school sports.
On Tuesday (13 January), the court heard challenges from two transgender students arguing that the bans in their states, Idaho and West Virginia, violate US equal protection rights and federal civil rights law.
Idaho became the first state to implement a ban on transgender athletes competing in women’s and girls’ sports in 2020, followed by West Virginia a year later with the Save Women’s Sports Act.
“All federal financial assistance shall be terminated” – anti-trans women in sport act, the Save Women’s Sports Act, states
Congress states: “The membership of athletic teams or sports designated solely for females shall only be open to biological females at birth. All federal financial assistance shall be terminated for failure to comply.”
At least five justices signalled support for the bans during court this week made up of a six–three conservative majority, making a ruling in favour of the states likely.
During his second term, former President Donald Trump overturned several LGBTQ+ equality protections, including signing Executive Order 14168, which recognised only two sexes, male and female, in the US.
Trump also signed an executive order in February 2025 intended to ban transgender women and girls from competing in women’s sports, directing that eligibility be based on the gender assigned at birth.
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The ruling has been touted as one of his major “achievements”, so much so that the White House posted a TikTok captioned: “All we needed was a new president,” listing Trump’s actions in his second term, including “No men in women’s sports”.
Idaho law states that “athletic teams or sports designated for females, women, or girls shall not be open to students of the male sex.”
According to BBC News, justice Brett Kavanaugh, one of the court’s conservatives, said: “We have to decide for the whole country.”
“Half the states are allowing transgender athletes to participate, half are not” – Justice Brett Kavanaug outlines 27 US states have barred trans women from participating in women’s sport
“When half the states are allowing transgender athletes to participate, half are not, why would we jump in and try to constitutionalise a role while there is still… uncertainty and debate?” he continued.
Lawyers representing the two athletes argued that transgender competitors who undergo treatment to suppress testosterone should be treated as an exception and not be barred.
Kathleen Hartnett, lawyer for Lindsay Hecox, a senior at Boise State University, said she was not arguing for the right of people with an “unfair advantage” to compete, but rather that trans women who do not present such advantages should not be excluded.
In West Virginia, only one student, Becky Pepper-Jackson, is affected by the ban. Idaho’s lawyer compared transgender discrimination to the historical legal discrimination faced by women or Black Americans, arguing that transgender individuals are not entitled to the same legal protections.
The court is expected to issue a decision on these cases in June.
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