Martina Navratilova slams Donald Trump as a 'bully' after his heated clash with Maine's governor over transgender athletes order

Martina Navratilova called U.S. President Donald Trump a "bully" after he engaged in a tense confrontation with Maine's Democratic Governor Janet Mills over transgender participation in women's sports. The clash took place during a bipartisan meeting of governors at the White House on February 21, where Trump reiterated his stance on banning transgender women from competing in female sports categories.

President Trump signed an executive order on February 5, 2025, titled "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports," which mandates that participation in female sports be restricted based on biological sex assigned at birth.

The order further allows the withdrawal of federal funding from educational institutions that do not comply and directs the Department of Homeland Security to deny visas to athletes competing under a gender identity different from their biological sex. Following the issuance of this executive order, the NCAA quickly changed its policy on transgender athletes.

During the White House meeting, Trump singled out Governor Mills and asked her whether Maine would comply with the new policy. When Mills responded that she would adhere to both state and federal law, Trump warned that failure to comply would result in a loss of federal funding.

Donald Trump: "The NCAA has complied immediately, by the way. That's good. But I understand Maine. Is Maine here? The governor of Maine? Are you not going to comply with it?"

Janet Mills: "I'm going to comply with state and federal law."

Trump: "Well, we are the federal law. Well, you better do it. You better do it because you're not going to get any federal funding at all if you don't. And by the way, your population, even though it's somewhat liberal, although I did very well there, your population doesn't want men playing in women's sports. So you better comply because otherwise you're not getting any federal funding."

The exchange quickly escalated, with Mills defiantly telling Trump she'll see him in court, to which Trump shot back:

"I look forward to that. That should be a real easy one. And enjoy your life after governor because I don't think you'll be in elected politics."

The moment quickly went viral, sparking widespread reactions. Reacting to a clip of the conversation, Martina Navratilova, a vocal critic of both Trump and the participation of transgender athletes in women's sports, took to social media to express her disapproval. On X (formerly Twitter), she wrote:

"He is such a godd**n bully!".

---

Martina Navratilova lauded Donald Trump for banning transgender athletes from women's sports

In Picture: Martina Navratilova (Source: Getty)

Martina Navratilova backed President Donald Trump’s executive order prohibiting transgender women from participating in women’s sports. She also expressed frustration with the Democratic Party, calling them out for not taking a comparable stance on the matter.

Taking to X, the 18-time Grand Slam singles champion wrote:

"I hate that the democrats totally failed women and girls on this very clear issue of women’s sports being for females only."

In other news, Martina Navratilova praised the NCAA for revising its policy on transgender participation following President Donald Trump’s executive order.