Claim: The May 2026 Presidential Proclamation has officially banned transgender women from women’s sports in the US.

Ahead of Donald Trump’s second term, banning men from women’s sports became one of his signature campaign issues, a message he repeated at rallies, debates, and public appearances. After returning to the office, Trump signed Executive Order 14168, which formally defined sex on a biological basis and laid the groundwork for broader sports policies.

He followed it with Executive Order 14201, titled ‘Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,’ which specifically targeted female athletic competition. The order effectively sought to bar transgender women from competing in women’s sports. However, the reality of the ban is more complicated than the order itself suggests.

Our Verdict: Partially True

While Trump’s order bars biological males from competing in women’s sports, organizations are not legally required to comply. Executive Order 14201 instead relies on financial pressure, threatening to cut off federal funding from institutions that refuse to follow the policy.

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The administration also pursued enforcement through visa restrictions and legal action against states such as Minnesota. In theory, institutions willing to withstand those penalties could still allow transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports.

Even without a direct federal mandate, the impact of the Executive Order became evident quickly. In the aftermath of Trump’s Executive Order, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) revised its policy, restricting women’s competition to athletes assigned female at birth. This effectively banned transgender athletes from participating in the NCAA. 

Similarly, under pressure from the United States government and Trump’s Executive Order, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) introduced new rules for the 2028 Olympics, barring transgender women and certain intersex athletes from women’s events while requiring biological sex verification. The 2028 Olympics are scheduled to be held in Los Angeles. 

Several states, like California, Minnesota, and Maine, have resisted the policy. And they have decided to follow state law instead, which allows transgender athletes to participate in women’s sports. In response to this defiance, the Trump administration has opened investigations and pursued legal action against the California Department of Education and CIF.

They have also sued Minnesota and its athletic body to force compliance. And Minnesota’s Attorney General has also sued the administration in response. In Maine’s case, federal funding was immediately frozen, but it has since been lifted, with specific grants still under review. Otherwise, the DOJ has filed a lawsuit against the state’s Department of Education.

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