[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] - South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem signed a bill on Thursday that will ban transgender girls from playing in sports leagues that match their gender identity
- Noem is the first governor to sign such a ban this year, making South Dakota the 10th state to enact such a law
- Lawmakers used as ammunition the case of a transgender woman, Lia Thomas, 22, as proof that trans athletes possess an unfair advantage over competition
- Thomas blew away the competition and shattered two national women's records at the Zippy International in Akron, Ohio in December
- Such was her dominance in the 1,650-yard freestyle that second placed swimmer Anna Kalandadze, a UPenn teammate, finished 38 seconds behind her
- The bill is set to take effect July 1, but still faces potential legal challenges along the way
The NCAA did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the bill's passage or whether it would take action as a result.
The college athletics organization last month adopted a sport-by-sport approach for transgender athletes, allowing each sport's national governing body to determine its policy on transgender participation.
The nine other states that have signed legislation banning transgender female athletes from participating in women's sports teams are Arkansas, Alabama, Texas, Idaho, Mississippi, Montana, West Virginia, and Tennessee.
Other states including Kentucky, Connecticut, Michigan, Pennsylvania have had similar bills proposed, however they are not expected to advance.
Bills in New Mexico and News Hampshire had previously failed before they could even be debated.
Related:
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Kristi Noem: 2021-10-16 Texas House passes bill banning transgender athletes from participating in school sports based on their gender identity
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Kristi Noem: 2022-02-04 Kristi Noem's pro-life proposal blocked by South Dakota Republicans
Kristi Noem: 2021-10-16 Texas House passes bill banning transgender athletes from participating in school sports based on their gender identity
Kristi Noem: 2021-10-03 Nat'l Teachers Union Prez Panicked DeSantis Will Trigger Flight To Private Schools