Recent Changes to NCAA Transgender Participation Policy
The NCAA has recently updated its policy on transgender participation to align with the executive order from President Donald Trump, which aims to restrict male participation in women’s sports.
Ithaca College’s Unique Situation
In a noteworthy development, Ithaca College, competing in NCAA Division III, has a male athlete who identifies as a transgender woman on its women’s rowing team. This raises questions about how such a situation is permissible under current rules.
Meet Juniper Gattone
Juniper Gattone, formerly known as Tyler Gattone, participated in the Cayuga Duals this past weekend as part of the Ithaca women’s rowing team, competing in the 3V race. Unfortunately, the team faced defeat against Hamilton and William Smith.
Lack of Transparency in Team Lineup
Interestingly, the Ithaca College athletics website failed to provide a complete listing of the women’s rowing team lineup. They did include details for the other events, such as the 2V and 1V races, which raises speculation that they aimed to avoid highlighting their trans-identifying athlete.
Inquiry into NCAA Compliance
OutKick reached out to Ithaca College seeking comments regarding Gattone’s participation on the women’s team, but received no response. Additionally, they did not clarify the exclusion of Gattone from the official team recap on their website.
Understanding NCAA Regulations
The situation is complex under the NCAA’s new transgender policy. While the NCAA governs postseason activities, regular season rules are subject to the discretion of individual conferences.
The Role of the Liberty League
Ithaca College is part of the Liberty League, which also includes the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). Notably, Sadie Schreiner, a trans-female athlete from RIT, recently expressed frustration over the limited Division I opportunities for male athletes in women’s sports.
Need for Policy Clarity
OutKick sought clarification from the Liberty League regarding any adjustments made to their transgender athlete policy in compliance with NCAA standards, but did not receive a reply.
Previous Incidents in Competitive Sports
A similar situation arose during the volleyball season when Blaire Fleming, a trans-female athlete, competed on the San Jose State volleyball team, leading to forfeited matches for several Mountain West schools. The NCAA maintained that the conference had jurisdiction over its schedule and tournament, where SJSU ended up finishing second.
The NCAA and the Potential Impact on Ithaca
The NCAA avoided complications in SJSU’s case since they lost in the Mountain West Championship, thus never confronting the eligibility issue directly. If SJSU had secured a spot in the NCAA Women’s Volleyball Tournament, Fleming would have been barred from participation due to the new policy.
The Future of Gattone’s Participation
As it stands, Gattone is competing on the women’s rowing team at Ithaca College, but will not be permitted to participate in the NCAA Division III Women’s Championship, set to take place at the end of May. OutKick queried the NCAA on what would occur if Gattone were to compete in these championships, referring us to their transgender athlete policy.
Conclusions
The NCAA has clearly stated that waivers are not an option, prohibiting students assigned male at birth from participating on women’s teams even with modified birth certificates or identification. If Gattone competes, the team would be classified as mixed and thus would lose eligibility to compete against women’s teams. It will be interesting to see how the NCAA addresses Gattone’s ongoing participation on the women’s rowing team at Ithaca College.
