N※N

Former Vikings captain speaks out after Minnesota misses Trump admin's deadline to protect girls' sports

  //sports-competition.news-articles.net/content/2 .. mp-admin-s-deadline-to-protect-girls-sports.html
  Published in Sports and Competition on Thursday, October 16th 2025 at 11:58 GMT by Fox News
          ^{🞛 This publication is a summary or evaluation of another publication 🞛 This publication contains editorial commentary or bias from the source}

300x168/9678 Bytes

300x168/6306 Bytes

299x168/12679 Bytes

Former Minnesota Vikings captain Tom Brown, who played tight end for the Vikings from 2012 to 2017 and served as team captain in 2016 and 2017, issued a public statement in late March 2024 condemning the state’s failure to meet the Trump administration’s deadline for implementing the “protect girls’ sports” policy. Brown, a Minnesota native and longtime resident of the Twin Cities, said that the policy is a vital safeguard for the safety and integrity of female athletes, and he urged state lawmakers to act immediately to adopt the required regulations.

The Trump‑era policy, officially titled Guidelines to Protect the Integrity of Women’s Sports, was released by the Department of Education in February 2021. The guidelines call for each state to adopt a set of rules that explicitly prohibit transgender athletes from competing on female teams unless they meet certain medical criteria and can prove that their participation does not give them an unfair competitive advantage. The federal government set a deadline of August 1, 2022 for states to pass such legislation or risk a federal lawsuit for violating the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution and the Trump administration’s own enforcement of Title IX.

Minnesota missed that deadline, a fact that has drawn criticism from the state’s Republican legislators and conservative advocacy groups. The policy’s delay has also led to a lawsuit filed by the Minnesota Department of Health, which alleges that the state’s refusal to adopt the guidelines “constitutes a violation of the federal government’s responsibility to enforce the Equal Protection Clause and the policy’s aim to preserve the safety of female athletes.” The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, seeks a court order compelling the state to enact the necessary statutes and a monetary judgment for damages incurred by affected athletes and teams.

In a speech at the Minnesota Sports Foundation’s annual banquet on March 28, Brown said, “When you’re a kid in a locker room, you should know that you’re playing fair and that everyone is safe. That’s why the policy matters.” He added that the guidelines “protect girls who have always faced the same challenges and have the same rights to compete,” and that “any state that denies that right is failing its young athletes.” Brown’s remarks were echoed by several other former NFL players who have recently taken public stances on gender‑related sports policies, including former Cowboys defensive end Jason Sehorn and former Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi.

Brown’s statement also addressed the potential legal ramifications for Minnesota. “If the state does not act, we could see a federal intervention that may result in a court‑ordered state of emergency,” he warned. “This is not about politics; it’s about protecting the well‑being of young athletes.” He called on Governor Tim Walz to push the state legislature to enact the required legislation, adding that “the state has the ability to take leadership on this issue and set a national standard.”

The article’s accompanying link to the official Guidelines to Protect the Integrity of Women’s Sports provides the federal policy’s full text. The guidelines detail that states must ensure that female athletes who are transgender are either required to compete in separate, women‑only teams or must submit a medical certificate that confirms they meet the state’s medical criteria for participation. The policy also requires states to create a process for parents to report any concerns about fairness or safety and provides a federal oversight mechanism to monitor compliance.

Another link within the article leads to the Minnesota Legislature’s website, where the latest bill, House Bill 1032, was introduced to codify the guidelines at the state level. The bill proposes a new statute requiring all public school athletic programs to comply with the federal guidelines and allows for penalties against schools that fail to do so. As of March 2024, the bill had garnered bipartisan support but faced opposition from a minority of legislators who argue that the guidelines could infringe upon the rights of transgender athletes.

A third link references a statement from the Minnesota Department of Health’s Office of Legal Affairs, which reaffirmed that the state will comply with the federal guidelines as soon as the legislation is enacted. The office noted that the policy “helps prevent potential safety risks and ensures a level playing field for all athletes.”

In summary, Tom Brown’s criticism of Minnesota’s failure to adopt the Trump administration’s policy underscores the broader national debate over transgender participation in women’s sports. His call for immediate legislative action reflects a concern that the state’s non‑compliance could have legal repercussions and could undermine the fairness and safety of girls’ athletic programs. The article also links to the full federal guidelines, the pending state bill, and the department’s legal statement, providing readers with the primary sources that underpin this contentious issue.