Women are losing the sports gender battle. Let’s help them win the war

Athletes know when they step onto the court, they are stepping into battle. Their jerseys are the armor, and the ball is the ammunition. For female athletes across the nation, winning the battle is much harder when their opponent is a bigger, faster and stronger male.  

The Wyoming Cowgirls volleyball team faced the decision to either forfeit their matches against San Jose State University (SJSU) whose women’s volleyball team included a male, or risk injury from a volleyball being spiked at 80 mph. The Cowgirls courageously put their safety first, willing to accept a loss to protect the integrity of women’s sports everywhere.  

The University of Wyoming (UW) joined three other Mountain West schools in forfeiting games against SJSU, including Utah State, Boise State and Nevada. The Mountain West Conference and the NCAA are two of countless governing bodies that continue to fail girls and women across the country.  

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Under the Biden administration, woke policies flourished with egregious diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) trainings and quotas. The Mountain West Conference was enabled to allow a male to compete in women’s volleyball for the same reason the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) allowed male swimmer Lia Thomas to compete in the women’s 500-yard freestyle: these organizations were celebrated and revered by Democrat leaders and the media. The atrocity of men competing in women’s sports and violating the safety and security of women’s spaces is the women’s rights issue of our time.  

Congress has a chance to ensure female athletes' rights are protected. FILE: University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas and Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines react after finishing tied for 5th in the 200 Freestyle finals at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships on March 18th, 2022, at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, Georgia. (Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

As National Girls and Women in Sports Day approaches on February 5, we are confronted with this intrusion on women’s rights. Women fought for years for Title IX protections to give us an equal opportunity in sports. Ironically, in the name of equality and under the guise of "progress," Democrats are helping men erase everything that women fought for. But this sex-based discrimination isn’t progressive; it's deeply regressive and utterly misogynistic.  

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In the 2024 election, Americans voted for change, revolting against the extreme leftist policies that led to record-breaking illegal immigration, sky-high inflation, and more. President Trump campaigned on the promise of protecting women’s sports, and we are proud to partner with Senator Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., and 28 Republican senators in getting the "Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act" across the finish line.  

This bill preserves Title IX protections for female athletes, reaffirming that gender be based solely on genetics and reproductive biology, as opposed to how a person chooses to "identify." 

With Republicans in control of the House, Senate and the White House, we are well-positioned to take this final step to preserve women’s rights to a fair playing field in their sport. We owe it to the little girls with big dreams across the country. 

In 1972, Title IX paved the way for American women and girls to compete on an even playing field, creating a safe space for female athletes to pursue their dreams. In recent years, protections under Title IX have crumbled, leaving women and girls vulnerable. While life isn’t fair, sports should be. 

The "Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act" reverses course on the woke policies that crept into sports, and we urge Congress to stand with women and girls across America.  

Riley Gaines is the host of OutKick's "Gaines for Girls." She is an Independent Women's Forum ambassador, Turning Point contributor, director of the Riley Gaines Center, and author of "Swimming Against the Current."

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U.S. Sen. Cynthia Lummis is a Republican from Wyoming who sits on the Senate Banking, Commerce, and Environment and Public Works committees.