US President Donald Trump will issue an executive order to exclude transgender girls and women from female-designated sporting competitions and teams.

Republicans say Wednesday’s directive restores fairness, while critics say it tramples on the rights of a small minority of athletes.

Trump was to sign the executive order on Wednesday night (local time), directing the US Department of Justice to ban transgender girls and women from taking part in female school sports.

It came under Trump’s interpretation of Title IX, a law against sex discrimination in federally funded education programs, a White House official said. The order will call for “immediate enforcement” in schools nationwide.

The official said the US Department of Education would lead investigations into schools to ensure compliance. That work could shift to other agencies if the department is dismantled, as Trump has pledged to do.

The debate over transgender inclusion in sports has often centred on fairness, with opponents saying people who have gone through male puberty have physical advantages.

Transgender activists say there is no evidence to show that transgender women have an unfair advantage.

The issue has become a rallying cry for Republicans in the US, though trans athletes account for a very small proportion of athletes at collegiate and high school level.

The order reverses the former Biden administration’s interpretation of Title IX that it protects transgender people from discrimination on the basis of sex, which was vacated by a federal judge in 2024.

The ban fulfils a Trump pledge during the 2024 presidential campaign, when pro-Trump television advertisements criticised the handful of transgender women and girls who compete in female sports.

More than 20 US states have passed laws that ban transgender girls from participating in girls’ sports, some of which have faced legal challenges.

-AAP