In late December, USA Boxing released a new set of guidelines for the inclusion of trans competitors, and right-wing media responded by criticizing the regulations, relying on anti-trans tropes and misinformation in their coverage. GOP members of Congress have since introduced twin legislation that promises to ban all trans competitors from the Olympic and amateur levels in any sport, citing the new regulations as a motivating concern and repeating the anti-trans framing popularized by right-wing media's backlash.
While the USA Boxing guidelines are a departure from a trend of sports organizations banning trans participation, the requirements are considered stringent. Athletes under the age of 18 must compete “as their birth gender,” and adult competitors are required to obtain genital surgery and regular hormone testing, both in the four years preceding competition and throughout any competitive period. Nevertheless, right-wing media are attacking the rules, which USA Boxing says build on the consensus of several medical groups and international athletic federations.
On January 3, Fox News' America's Newsroom co-anchor Dana Perino referred to the eligibility requirements for trans female boxers as “nonsense.” Hosts and guests repeatedly referred to trans women as “men” or “guys,” and co-anchor Bill Hemmer quoted former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines' claim that “it will take a woman getting killed before these misogynistic fools wake up.”
Fox’s Outnumbered also said a woman could die because of the new rules, arguing that the regulations would lead to “one-punch killings.” Co-anchor Harris Faulkner cited Gaines' campaign against the inclusion of trans swimmers, misgendering Gaines' former competitor Lia Thomas in the process and expanding the panel's criticism to trans inclusion in noncontact athletic competitions as well.
Despite such concerns over safety, coverage disregarded USA Boxing's medical citations, which include the recommendations of Boston Children’s Hospital Sports Medicine and Harvard Medical School Teaching Hospital. Instead, for instance, The Ingraham Angle platformed the perspective of UFC fighter Colby Covington, who argued that “it doesn't matter what their hormone levels or pronouns are,” because “when they dig up their bones in 200 years, their bones won't leave pronouns.” (Actually, archeologists are capable of imputing that a skeleton may have belonged to a transgender person after more than 200 years.)
The following week, in a two-part interview with USA Boxing coach Carry Williams, Charlie Kirk referred to trans women as “men” and argued that “someone might get killed” under the new regulations. In the second segment, Kirk made an explicit call for street violence against trans boxers:
CHARLIE KIRK (HOST): The men part of USA Boxing should find the men that are thinking they're women and go pick fights with them. Do it honorably. Don't sneak attack them. Don't go find them in an alley. Like, don't go like ambush them. Go eye to eye and say, “Let's do this, pal. Since you're so tough and you want to go beat up on women, let's fight.” Literally. That's what boxing's all about. But I will venture a guess: Any man that goes to fight women is not a very good boxer, wants to resurrect their career, they're narcissists, they're cheats, they’re losers, and they should be beat up and kicked out of the sport.
According to the Williams Institute, trans people are “over four times more likely than cisgender people to be victims of violent crime.”
USA Boxing responded to backlash by restating that it is in compliance with federal law. The following day, U.S. Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL) and Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) introduced twin legislation in both the House and the Senate that would “prohibit any governing body recognized by the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) from allowing men to participate in any athletic event intended for females.”
A joint press release cited the USA Boxing guidelines and repeated right-wing media's anti-trans framing. Tuberville's statement claimed that “men should not be competing in women’s sports at any level—and especially not in a sport like boxing. Whether in little league or the Olympics, it’s unsafe, it’s unfair, and it’s just plain wrong. This bill will ensure that the Olympics are fair to American women who train their whole lives to represent our country on the world stage.”
The press release also cited the support of a number of anti-trans organizations, including the Alliance Defending Freedom, the Independent Women's Forum, and the Independent Council on Women’s Sports and quoted several anti-trans figures, including American Principles Project President Terry Schilling and — yet again — Riley Gaines.
Gaines has integrated the legislation into her own continuing campaign against trans inclusion in women's sports. Acting as an expert for Fox News on the issue of trans inclusion in the Olympics, she praised the legislation in part because it would block her former competitor Lia Thomas' recent legal claim to the right to participate in Olympic Trials.
Tuberville also promoted the legislation on Fox News, saying, “This administration, especially the Democrats, are going after women. They attack women, they hate women, and so they're going after women's sports and that's where it all starts.” The Biden administration has proposed alterations to Title IX that would prohibit the categorical exclusion of trans athletes and instead require a case by case approach, depending on the athlete, level of competition, and sport in question.
According to the Williams Institute, trans youth and adults make up 1.4% and .5% of the population of the United States, respectively. In addition to federal legislation targeting trans inclusion at the national and international level, state legislatures have already introduced 44 bans on trans student athletes in 2024. The Human Rights Campaign, the American Civil Liberties Union, and Athlete Ally have denounced legislative and policy efforts to bar trans athletes from competition.
