USA Hockey — a governing body with major influence over amateur leagues across the country — kicked off Pride Month last year with a Facebook post, saying, “We’re focused on fostering a culture where everyone feels welcome.”
And yet, just five months later, USA Hockey approved a new policy barring trans athletes in all programs where participation is restricted by sex — but it was never announced.
Harrison Browne, an out trans hockey player, brought the new policy to light in a viral Instagram post in mid-January, writing that USA Hockey “has quietly barred trans people from participating in hockey safely.”
The new policy initially states that the “vast majority” of USA Hockey’s programs allow anyone to play regardless of their gender identity. But the new policy stipulates that players must participate in accordance with their gender assigned at birth in programs that are “restricted by sex, including Girls’ hockey programs that are restricted to female athletes in the age classifications 19 and under and below, high school programs that are restricted to either male or female players, and adult hockey teams, leagues or events that are restricted to male or female players,” according to USA Hockey.
USA Hockey insisted that the new policy was prompted by the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee’s requirement that each sport’s national governing body create their own policies to follow federal guidance. President Donald Trump signed an executive order last February stating that the US government opposes “male competitive participation in women’s sports more broadly.” The order called on federal agencies to pull funding from programs that do not comply with the policy.
The USA Hockey policy further states that individuals assigned female at birth who have “undergone any male hormone therapy” are not allowed to play in programs that are limited to female participation.
“It’s no surprise that men’s hockey is not a safe environment for gender non-conforming individuals and the women’s side is often the only place for most queer people to play,” Browne wrote on Instagram. “Barring trans individuals from these spaces essentially bars us from hockey. Horrible.”
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The new policy directly contradicts an inclusive policy implemented by USA Hockey in 2019 that allowed athletes to play in accordance with their gender identity.
With exceptions, the new policy’s restrictions do not apply to youth hockey, junior hockey, disabled hockey programs, high school and prep school co-ed hockey, and adult co-ed or “open” hockey, according to USA Hockey. Still, some high school, co-ed, and adult or “open” hockey programs “are restricted by their internal rules to males or females,” USA Hockey notes.
USA Hockey’s policy change drew criticism from the New York City Pride Hockey Alliance, an LGBTQ hockey league in New York City.
“The New York City Pride Hockey Alliance stands firmly with our trans athletes and the broader trans community in response to the recent decision by USA Hockey to ban trans athletes,” the organization said in a written statement. “The policy directly contradicts the values of inclusion, authenticity, and empowerment that we believe are fundamental not only to us, but to the sport as a whole.”
The organization further stated that trans athletes “belong in our game” and that excluding them “sends a message that some identities are less worthy of space, opportunity, and respect.”
“That message has no place on the ice or in our community,” the New York City Pride Hockey Alliance said.
A spokesperson for USA Hockey did not respond to a request for comment on Jan. 29.
