(ConservativeJournal.org) – House Republicans, led by Representative Claudia Tenney of New York, are trying to get the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) to ban transgender-identifying male athletes from participating in women’s sports. Tenney’s initiative came right after a similar move to ban trans athletes by the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). This call for action urges a reconsideration of current policies to ensure better opportunities for biologically female athletes.
In a letter to NCAA president Charlie Baker, Tenney, and 16 other Republicans emphasized the importance of protecting women’s sports by changing the current transgender student-athlete guidelines. The NCAA currently allows individual sport’s organizations to decide for themselves whether transgender athletes can participate in sports for both genders.
Their appeal follows the NAIA Council of Presidents’ unanimous decision from April 8 to restrict the female division to biological females only. This affected about 250 small colleges and universities nationwide. Tenney applauded the NAIA’s stance, citing scientific evidence of the inherent physical advantages of biological males in sports, even after hormonal therapy.
In the letter, Tenney criticized the NCAA’s policy for ignoring what she called the objective biological difference between genders. This is especially relevant considering recent remarks by University of South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley in support of transgender, biologically male, participation in women’s sports. Tenney argued that such sentiments disregard biological realities and give female athletes much less opportunities.
The congresswoman urged the NCAA to change its view, arguing that transgender inclusion in female sports is extremely unfair. She cited the case of Lia Thomas, a transgender swimmer at the University of Pennsylvania, as an example of the challenges biological women have to face against transgender athletes.
Despite Tenney’s criticism, the NCAA defended their existing policies. They stated they are fully committed to “equal and equitable competition”. They also reiterated their support for women’s sports and pledged to maintain fair standards for all student-athletes in NCAA championships.
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