Q&A: Protecting Fairness in Sports

Q&A: Protecting Fairness in Sports

With U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley

Q: Why did you hold a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on women's sports?

A: Fifty-four years ago, Congress passed legislation to ensure schools provide fair and equitable treatment for male and female student-athletes. Title IX opened the door for women to participate in sports at educational institutions that receive federal money, from elementary schools through college. In the last five decades, the law has revolutionized athletic opportunities for females in gyms, courts, tracks, fields, pools and mats across America. Nine times as many girls are participating in high school sports today than when President Nixon signed the law in 1972. More than a quarter million women competed in college athletics in the 2024-2025 season. These statistics are just the tip of the iceberg. Millions of girls in communities across the country are empowered with self-confidence, teamwork, resilience, physical fitness and more by participating in clubs, recreational leagues and local teams.

However, the equal footing launched in 1972 has one foot on a banana peel. Common sense and sound science have been thrown out the window by allowing men to compete in women's sports. What's worse, the practice is reckless and endangers opportunity, fairness and safety for female athletes. Simply put, allowing men to play in women's sports breaks the promise of Title IX.

The committee hearing I led gave female athletes a platform to tell their stories and inform policymakers about the impact of men competing in women's sports. Witnesses explained the damaging consequences of prioritizing men over women and called upon lawmakers to recognize how young female athletes are getting sidelined and harmed by allowing men to compete in women's sports. The Supreme Court ruling this summer allowed states to bar boys and men from competing in girls' sports. To date, 27 states have laws and policies in place to protect girls sports. At least 66% of American adults favor a law or policy that would require athletes to compete on teams that match their sex at birth. And yet, none of the Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee fully participated at the hearing. Not a single one asked a question or called witnesses to testify. It's pretty ironic that the political party claiming to support women and science is the political party not backing science or girls' aspirations to compete.

Testimony from a former professional women's soccer player pinpointed what's at stake for daughters and granddaughters across the country, "We are training girls to suppress their correct instincts and feelings to cater to the desires of boys. We are failing female athletes as a society, and we are raising girls who are punished for standing up for what is right and obvious." Women should not be asked to cede their opportunities just to make men comfortable.

Q: What is the Protect College Sports Act?

A: Sports is woven into the social fabric of America. From a young age, athletes aspire to succeed and put in the work and sacrifice to reach their full potential. Many Iowans plan their calendars around sporting events to cheer for their favorite teams. Barbara and I are lifelong Panther fans for our alma mater, the University of Northern Iowa. In recent years, collegiate sports have experienced quite a bit of turbulence navigating the ecosystem of Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) compensation rights, billion-dollar media contracts and the uncertainty of the transfer portal. Consensus has grown among fans, student athletes, coaches, and leaders of colleges and universities across the country to bring stability to college sports. A broad coalition supports the bipartisan Protect College Sports Act. This legislation would help foster fair competition, promote transparency and bring certainty to the chaos that's disrupting collegiate sports in conferences across the country. It would establish a nationwide playbook so athletes, coaches, professional sports leagues and Olympic organizations are on the same page.

Here's some key provisions in the bill:

• strengthen NIL transparency (more than $600 must be disclosed) and establish a uniform national standard
• standardize rules governing transfer and eligibility
• restrict athletes to one penalty-free transfer, and a second transfer with a one-year loss of eligibility with limited exceptions
• codify a maximum five-year eligibility period for collegiate athletes and block professional athletes from returning to collegiate competition
• require schools to maintain the number of roster spots and outlays for non-revenue generating sports and women's sports roster at 2024-2025 levels
• provide health and safety protections for athletes, does not override state laws prohibiting men from competing in women's sports

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