Tell the Irish Dance governing bodies: Stop allowing boys to compete as girls

No sport is immune to gender ideology, not even Irish Dance. We need your help to stop it.

In December 2025, a boy won the Southern Regional Champion title in the Girls' U16 category, the third time that he has done so. For three years in a row, The Irish Dancing Commission (CLRG) and the Irish Dance Teachers' Association of North America (IDTANA), the main Irish Dance governing bodies, have allowed dancers to compete in the category that aligns with their self-attested gender identity, not their actual sex. The result has been that scores of young female dancers have lost titles, qualifications, and placements that were rightfully theirs. Sadly, many of these girls have chosen to leave the sport rather than pour their energy and finances into a fundamentally unfair competition against a male dancer.

This year, the World Irish Dance Championships will be hosted in the United States in Chicago. Concerned Women for America (CWA) sent a letter to these organizations asking them to change their policy to one that recognizes biological reality and protects their female dancers.

But we need your help!

The powers-that-be in Irish Dance are afraid of a backlash from the other side if they change their policy. They need to be convinced that those in the Irish Dance world who believe in biological reality and in protecting female athletes are in the majority.

If you are an Irish Dancer or have a child, relative, or friend who is, make your voice heard by sending your own message to CLRG and IDTANA, asking them to change their policy.

Important points that can be included in your letter:

The science is clear: men have physical advantages over women. One of those advantages is that women have 60-80% of the thigh muscle of men, a critical difference in a sport that requires strong legs for leaps, jumps, and stamina.
Allowing boys to compete does not mean that only the girl who gets 2nd place is affected. It also means that the girl who got 11th place missed out on being in the top 10 and qualifying for the next competition. It means the girl who got 26th missed out on her goal of making it into the top 25. There is a ripple effect that affects every dancer in the age category.
Irish Dance is, fundamentally, highly gendered. The differing shoes (feminine ghillies vs. male reel shoes), the rules requiring a certain ratio of men-to-women on celi teams, and the sex-specific dances (only women dance the slip jig) all celebrate the unique differences between men and women. Pretending that sex is interchangeable erodes the foundation of the sport.

Messages sent through our action center will be delivered directly to Liam Harney, President of IDTANA (president@idtana.org) and Sandra Connick, Chairperson at CLRG (chairperson@clrg.ie)