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Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier on Tuesday urged U.S. Masters Swimming to certify it will change its gender participation policy that allows its biological male members to compete against females or enter their locker room.
Uthmeier made the demand at a news conference and said the Florida-based organization will face a lawsuit if it fails to comply with the orders. The U.S. Masters Swimming Board of Directors and Rules Committee updated its participation guidelines last month.
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Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier speaks during a news conference at the Orlando Office of the Attorney General on Tuesday, July 15, 2025, where he asserted that U.S. Masters Swimming, a nonprofit in Florida, should no longer allow transgender athletes to compete against women swimmers or face legal action. (Rich Pope/Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
“USMS allows members to register for the competition category that aligns with their gender identity and/or expression and to participate in sanctioned events in that category,” the new guidelines stated.
“However, swimmers will not be included in Recognition Programs (as defined above) unless they are swimming in the competition category that aligns with their sex assigned at birth or they meet the eligibility requirements” outlined in its statement.
To be eligible for the U.S. Masters Swimming’s women’s recognition programs, the policy stated that “Members of the Female Sex are eligible for Recognition Programs in the women’s category, regardless of their gender identity or gender expression.”
“Members with 46 XY DSD whose gender identity or gender expression is female are eligible for Recognition Programs in the women’s category if they can establish to USMS’s comfortable satisfaction that their sex assigned at birth is female,” the policy added.
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Uthmeier said the policy didn’t go far enough.
“This is not acceptable and does not fly with Florida law,” he said, via Fox 35 Orlando. “This is not right. We will use every tool at our disposal… to ensure that we are protecting women and girls. It still seems insane to me that we’re having this conversation in this country, but we will always fight for what’s right in Florida.
“We’re the state that woke goes to die, and that’s going to continue. We will always fight for what’s right and just.”
U.S. Masters Swimming responded to Uthmeier’s lawsuit threat in a statement to Fox News Digital later Tuesday.
“U.S. Masters Swimming is aware of the public comments made by the Florida Attorney General today. We will respond to any direct inquiry in good faith and in accordance with applicable law,” U.S. Masters Swimming said.
“Eligibility for competitive recognition programs is based upon a swimmer’s sex assigned at birth, under USMS’s interim eligibility policy. Trans women are not eligible for records, Top 10 times, and awards in the women’s category in all USMS-sanctioned events. However, it does allow adults to participate in the category that aligns with their gender identity. These standards reflect legal review, member feedback, and alignment with the Policy on Eligibility from World Aquatics, which USMS is a member federation of.”
U.S. Masters Swimming came under fire earlier this year when a transgender swimmer won five gold medals in the women’s category.
Women’s swimmer Wendy Enderle swims at the 2018 USMS Spring Championship (Courtesy of Wendy Enderle)
Louisiana woman and long-time swimmer Wendy Enderle said she filed the request for an eligibility review after finding out that one of the competitors she has faced for years was transgender.
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Because the meet in question took place in San Antonio, Texas, the state’s attorney general, Ken Paxton, launched an investigation into whether the organization’s polices violated Texas’ consumer protection laws.
Fox News’ Jackson Thompson contributed to this report.
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