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The US Hencings board voted to change its current policy that prioritized states with LGBTQ-friendly laws for host sites for competitions and a policy that prevented the game of national anthem at some events.
The decision comes after months of criticism for punishing a female fence who refused to fence a trans opponent who included control by federal legislators at a congressional hearing in early May.
The changes were voted into effect at a board meeting on Saturday.
An official announcement says US fence “adopted a streamlined policy using criteria that prioritize costs, security and convenience of any national event bid across all 50 states.” The new policy “ensures that host cities meet strict standards of membership security and cost -effectiveness.”
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Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) holds briefly of the United States in front of an alleged screenshot from US Fence Council Director Damien Lehfeldt’s Instagram during the “unreasonable game: Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports”, held by the Department of Government Efficiency Subcommitee at US Capitol on May 7, 2025 in Washton, Dc, DC, DC, DC,
Meanwhile, the board’s new national hymn policy will take effect on 2025 Summer Nationals and will be reviewed annually by the Tournament Committee.
“Upon recommendation from the Tournament Committee, the Board of Directors adopted a uniform national anthem policy that governs all the United States -fencing national events,” the announcement said, adding that the new policy will “provide consistent, respectful minimum guidance in honor of flags and hymns across nine annual tournaments.”
Back in December, the board held a vote to play National Anthem at the start of tournaments before “All NACs and National Championships”, but it was voted against 8-2 with a holding.
The former policy of the host site, which was announced in November 2022, gave preference when choosing host cities for national tournaments to states without laws that “harm members of LGBTQ society” and say that does not “have laws undermining women’s reproductive health.”
This policy came into force in the 2023 season, the same year it changed its gender policy. It later released one List of states That it intended to “avoid where it was possible” and the states that it flattened out would not allow to host great events.
The states on the list of “not allowed” were Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee and Texas.
The states on the list “Avoid where possible”, included Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Utah, West Virginia, Wyoming, Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississip North Dakota, Oklaha, Oklaha Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia.
The previous politics became one of the organization’s biggest criticisms after Fencer Stephanie Turner ignited the global setback against the organization as she recorded a video of her kneeling in protest of a transpower during a competition in Maryland at the end of March.
US Gymnastics that assesses transgender Inclusion policy
The footage became viral in the middle of news that Turner was disqualified from the event and gave a black card to refuse to fence.
The controversy was then the subject of a federal consultation on May 7th. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Under Committee’s “InJourly Play: Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” Then Witness Witness Against US fence chair Damien Lehfeldt.
Lehfeldt took harsh criticism from Republican legislators for the organization’s transient inclusion and choice of websites.
DOGE SUBPORTED CEO REP. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., Urged the organization for its host city policy.
“When choosing sites for its national fence events, for example, board policy is to avoid states whose laws and policies on LGBTQ rights and abortion are against. It uses ‘equality cards’ to determine which states for blacklist from its competitions and which ones to favor,” Greene said.
“This ends up favoring a lot of blue states and harming a lot of red. So it creates politically determined winners and losers-but it has absolutely nothing to do with fences. And it contradicts the US hencing’s statutory duty as NGB to ‘develop interest and participation throughout the US’ in fence.”
The US Fence also announced that it is preparing to change its current policy that allows trans athletes to compete in the women’s category back in April.
“In the event that the US fence is forced to change its current attitude in accordance with supervisory bodies or federal legislation, the new political states must, athletes competing in the US hencing-sanctioned tournaments compete according to their biological gender,” the announcement reads.
The proposed updated policy ensures that the women’s category “will only be open to athletes of the female gender.” The category of the gentlemen “will be open to all other athletes who are otherwise eligible for competition.”
