Trans women can compete in USA Powerlifting, ruling says

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Transgender women can now compete in USA Powerlifting after a court ruled in favor of athlete JayCee Cooper, who filed a discrimination case against the federation after she was banned from competing in women's events.

USA Powerlifting must revise its existing policy pertaining to trans women in its events by next Monday — two weeks after the initial ruling. CBS News has reached out to USA Powerlifting for a statement, but has yet to hear back.

"The harm is in making a person pretend to be something different, the implicit message being that who they are is less than," wrote Judge Patrick C. Diamond in the ruling.

The judge also wrote that while USAPL focused on the notion of "fairness" in its decision to bar trans women from competition, citing an unfair advantage, "The USAPL's evidence of competitive advantage does not take into account any competitive disadvantage a transgender athlete might face from, for example, increased risk of depression and suicide, lack of access to coaching and practice facilities, or other performance suppression common to transgender persons."

In light of the decision, Cooper posted a graphic with a caption that read "We won!" on her Instagram, directing followers to a link in her bio that leads to a statement from Gender Justice, a Minnesota-based organization that fights for gender equity in the U.S.