SCOTUS, let states do what's right: Defend women in sports | Opinion

The U.S. Supreme Court on Jan. 13 will hear two cases related to how far states can go to protect women’s and girls’ sports. 

It’s been a long time coming for the young women who’ve stood up and made a case for how unfair it is for them to be forced to compete against biological males. 

They deserve a win.

Since 2020, 27 states have passed measures that ban transgender athletes from playing on female teams and accessing private places like locker rooms and bathrooms. Despite strong support from the Trump administration for women’s sports, those laws are at stake, depending on how the court rules later in 2026. 

The nation's highest court last summer agreed to take up West Virginia v. B.P.J. and Little v. Hecox. Both West Virginia’s and Idaho’s laws regarding women's and girls ' rights were challenged by transgender athletes, and they raise different legal questions.

Title IX, the federal law banning sex-based discrimination at educational institutions, and the Constitution’s equal protection clause are at play.  

Does Title IX allow states to defend women's rights? It should. 

The Supreme Court will consider both issues in the West Virginia case. The state passed its Save Women’s Sports Act in 2021, but it was promptly challenged by the ACLU. 

That’s when Lainey Armistead got involved and joined the lawsuit to defend the law, along with the help of the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF).

At the time the law was passed, Armistead played soccer at West Virginia State University, and she appreciated the protections it gave her and her teammates. She graduated in 2022, but she has continued her legal fight because she understands how important it is for women and girls to have equal – and fair – opportunities to participate in sports. 

“Soccer taught me how to lead,” Armistead told me. “It gave confidence and it gave me opportunities I never would have had otherwise, such as going to college on a soccer scholarship. Standing up for girls who want a chance to play fairly and safely is not abstract. It’s personal. It’s who I was. And I think that we need to protect our girls and women and protect biological reality.”

Even one transgender athlete can have a large impact. Some estimates, quoted by ADF and others who’ve studied the data, show that the transgender plaintiff in the West Virginia case has displaced more than 400 girls in the sports the athlete competes in. 

ADF has also intervened in the Idaho case and is representing Madison Kenyon, a former collegiate athlete on Idaho State University’s track and cross-country teams. She was forced to compete against a transgender athlete and lost. 

“If the court doesn’t rule in our favor, I think the effects could definitely be devastating,” ADF legal counsel Suzanne Beecher told me. “Title IX is clear that it was passed in order to protect equal opportunities for girls. So I think the arguments that Title IX protects states’ rights to protect their women and girls in their sports is incredibly strong.”

Riley Gaines helped this movement gain momentum 

While her name isn’t on these lawsuits before the Supreme Court, Riley Gaines has become one of the most influential voices for fairness in women’s sports. And she’ll be paying close attention to the arguments.

In 2022, the then-NCAA collegiate swimmer from Kentucky tied with transgender swimmer Lia Thomas. Thomas also won a national title in another event. 

Gaines, who now hosts “The Riley Gaines Show” podcast, knew this wasn’t right, and she began speaking out about it. Since that time, she’s become famous for her strong stance in support of female athletes and has helped bring a lawsuit against the NCAA. 

This issue has taken on a whole new meaning for her, too. In the fall, Gaines and her husband welcomed a baby girl to their family. If her daughter is a future athlete, Gaines wants her to have the equal opportunities and Title IX protections she deserves.

“This is the pinnacle of the fight that we’ve been fighting – myself and other female athletes, and parents, especially of young girls,” Gaines told me. “If I had to predict how it’s going to go, I think it will be an outcome that is in favor of our fight.”

I hope she’s right. 

Ingrid Jacques is a columnist at USA TODAY. Contact her at [email protected] or on X: @Ingrid_Jacques