But the panel said that given the practical difficulty of distinguishing financial and sex-based concerns, the effect of accepting such a distinction would only force universities under serious budget constraints to cast decisions made under the shadow of Title IX as financial ones. The panel also rejected the athletes' argument that eliminating men's wrestling and soccer did not serve an important government objective because it merely decreased opportunities for men without increasing those for women. Those claims must be resolved under Title VI, which bars discrimination based on race, color or national origin in any program receiving federal funds, the panel said. But in a concurring opinion, Wood added that a university might in some situations have the additional funding needed to maintain athletic programs that are not competitive. In that case, Wood said, he would expect a school to refrain from cutting any programs in an attempt to reach proportionality in athletic participation between the sexes.
Participation is more important than percentages.
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