Two days after President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning transgender participation in female sports on Wednesday, the Colorado High School Activities Association declined to clarify where it stands on the issue.
CHSAA’s policy on transgender participation in sports is addressed in its 2024-25 bylaws under Article 3, Bylaw 300, which allows those athletes to compete “free from unlawful discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identification.”
When asked if it will continue to follow that policy, CHSAA released a statement on Friday that did not directly answer the question.
“We are aware of the Executive Order issued by President Donald Trump and we recognize its potential implications,” the statement read. “As always, we will continue to monitor both State and Federal statutes and developments on behalf of our membership. At this time, we have no further comment.”
CHSAA did not immediately respond to further inquiries from The Post about whether its bylaw on transgender participation remains applicable, or if there are transgender athletes currently competing in Colorado high school sports whom the president’s order could affect.
President Trump’s executive order cited Title IX requirements and stated that transgender participation in female sports is “demeaning, unfair, and dangerous to women and girls, and denies women and girls the equal opportunity to participate and excel in competitive sports.”
U.S. Department of Education’s Deputy General Counsel Candice Jackson, a Trump appointee, added that “this Administration will protect female athletes from the danger of competing against and the indignity of sharing private spaces with someone of the opposite sex.”
“The Department of Education stands proudly with President Trump’s action as we prioritize Title IX enforcement against educational institutions that refuse to give female athletes the Title IX protections they deserve,”
While CHSAA declined to spell out its position, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis’ office pushed back on Trump’s executive order.
“We are reviewing this order to understand its impacts here in Colorado, but this is federal government overreach on decisions local leagues and communities should be making to ensure opportunities and fairness for all student-athletes,” a spokesman for the governor said in a statement to The Post.
As part of Trump’s executive order, school districts and universities that fail to comply with the Trump administration’s new policy can have federal government funding rescinded. That means if CHSAA chooses to allow its membership to ignore Trump’s order, it could impact the finances of Colorado schools.
Trump’s administration said his executive order , including enforcement actions, against schools and athletic associations comprised of schools that deny women single-sex sports and single-sex locker rooms.”
On Thursday, the NCAA changed with the new policy limiting competition in women’s sports to athletes who were assigned female at birth. That change will apply to Colorado colleges, including the state’s largest universities in CU and CSU.
In California, the state’s interscholastic federation declared it would not comply with Trump’s executive order, according to Instead, the high school athletic association will continue to follow California state law that allows athletes to participate in sports based off their gender identity.
Per a transgender athlete meets with his or her school “to determine the gender assignment for the prospective student-athlete.”
“The CHSAA will review athletic eligibility decisions based on gender assignment of transgender student-athletes in accordance with its approved policies and appeals procedures,” the bylaw reads.
