US President Donald Trump has once again come under fire for mocking transgender athletes during a rambling speech at the House GOP’s annual retreat on 6 January, in which he also falsely referenced Algerian Olympic boxer Imane Khelif as transgender.
Speaking to Republican lawmakers, Trump performed a grotesque impression of a weightlifting competition, mimicking both a cisgender woman and a transgender woman athlete in a way that critics have labelled “demeaning” and “embarrassing.”
“Drops the thing, walks off the stage crying. Her mother’s crying, her father’s crying,” Trump said while impersonating a woman struggling to lift weights.
He then launched into a caricature of a trans woman competing in the same event:
“Guy gets up. He said, ‘Have you lifted before?’ ‘A little bit.’ And he walks up, ‘bing’… He could’ve gone ‘ding, ding’.”
Trump continued, calling the scenario “crazy” before moving into a now-familiar talking point: falsely claiming that Imane Khelif, an Olympic athlete who has publicly affirmed she is not transgender, had transitioned.
False Claims About Imane Khelif
Trump has repeatedly referenced Khelif, despite her making clear statements affirming her gender identity as a cisgender woman.
During his speech, Trump described Khelif as a “young gentleman who transitioned,” before backpedalling slightly:
“Which, y’know – to each his own. I want to be very liberal about this, I’m trying to get that vote, it’s not an easy vote to get.”
He inaccurately suggested Khelif’s Olympic opponent, Italian boxer Angelina Carini, withdrew due to concerns over her opponent’s gender identity. In reality, Carini conceded defeat just 46 seconds into the bout and later apologised to Khelif for the abuse she received online, stating:
“If the IOC said she can fight, I respect that decision.”
Khelif was cleared to compete by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympics, after previous disqualifications due to gender eligibility rules enforced by the International Boxing Association (IBA). The IOC later raised doubts about the validity of the IBA’s testing methods.
Despite this, Trump used the bout as an example in his speech, saying:
“The whole thing is ridiculous… It’s so demeaning to women.”
Trump’s Anti-Trans Executive Orders
In February 2025, Trump signed an executive order titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” on National Girls and Women in Sports Day. The order bans transgender women from participating in women’s sports, becoming the third anti-trans order signed during his current term.
“This is demeaning, unfair and dangerous to women and girls,” the order states, adding that it is US policy to oppose “male competitive participation in women’s sports” in the name of safety and fairness.
Online Backlash
Social media users quickly criticised Trump’s latest comments.
“He’s mimicking women weightlifting and talking about transitioning women boxing. Hasn’t he something more important to do or talk about?” one person posted on X (formerly Twitter).
Another labelled the performance “embarrassing,” calling out Trump’s continued use of misinformation and mockery to target transgender people.
Repeating Harmful Myths
Trump’s remarks are part of a wider pattern. He has previously made conspiratorial claims about trans and LGBTQIA+ figures, including falsely suggesting Pete Buttigieg was “pretending” to be gay — despite Buttigieg being openly gay for more than a decade, married since 2018, and raising two children with husband Chasten Buttigieg.
Despite repeated corrections from organisations like the IOC, Trump continues to falsely link gender identity to sports performance and international policy, furthering a culture war narrative at the expense of trans and gender-diverse people.
