Federal judge clears male to play in female volleyball championship

Colorado U.S. District Judge S. Kato Crews rejected an emergency petition from past and current women’s volleyball players to stop a man from competing in an upcoming conference championship. Crews’ order will allow a male athlete who identifies as female on San Jose State University’s team to play against female players at the Mountain West Conference championship in Las Vegas later this week. San Jose will now enter the tournament as the conference’s No. 2 seed with a 12-6 record after opposing teams chose to forfeit a total of six games.

A group of volleyball players and advocates launched a federal lawsuit earlier this month alleging that the Mountain West Conference’s policy allowing male players who identify as transgender to play on female sports teams violates Title IX, the federal civil rights law prohibiting sex discrimination in educational programs and events. Allowing a male to play on and against an all-female contact sports team puts the players at risk of serious injury, the lawsuit alleged. The plaintiffs requested an emergency preliminary injunction to keep the San Jose player from participating in the upcoming championship.

What was the judge’s rationale? Crews argued that the purpose of a preliminary injunction is to preserve the status quo. Allowing transgender players on teams has been the status quo since the conference amended its rules in 2022, the judge said. The player in question has also been on San Jose’s roster since that time, meaning an injunction would change, rather than preserve, normality in the conference, he continued. Crews also took issue with the timing of the injunction request, noting that despite the tournament dates being scheduled months in advance, the lawsuit was only filed last week.

How have plaintiffs responded? Attorney William Bock filed an emergency motion to appeal hours after Crews issued his order denying the injunction.

Why doesn’t Title IX automatically protect female athletes from playing against a male? President Joe Biden redefined sex discrimination under Title IX with a 2021 executive order. The new Title IX verbiage, released in an April rule change, added gender identity and sexual orientation, alongside biological sex, to classes legally protected from discrimination. Biden’s change sparked many court battles and resulted in several differing federal opinions. The new Title IX verbiage officially took effect in August, except in areas where judges have placed it on hold due to court challenges.

Dig deeper: Read my report on a similar case where New Hampshire parents were silenced for protesting rules that allowed an athlete who identified as transgender to play on a female soccer team.