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Boston Globe
a day ago
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Trans athlete wins 2 girls events at California track and field finals
Advertisement Hernandez wrapped up the night with a first place finish in the triple jump, sharing the top spot with Kira Gant Hatcher who trailed by just over a half-meter. Earlier in the afternoon, Hernandez placed second in the long jump. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Olympians Marion Jones and Tara Davis-Woodhall previously set state championship records in the long jump in 1993 and 2017, respectively, both surpassing 22 feet (6.7 meters). This year's winner, Loren Webster, topped 21 feet (6.40 meters), with Hernandez trailing by a few inches. The California Interscholastic Federation announced the new policy earlier this week in response to Hernandez's success heading into the championships. Under the policy, the federation allowed an additional student to compete and medal in the events where Hernandez qualified. Advertisement The two-day championship kicked off Friday in sweltering heat at a high school near Fresno. Temperatures reached the triple digits during Saturday's finals. The atmosphere was relatively quiet despite critics — including parents, conservative activists and President Donald Trump — calling for Hernandez to be barred from competing. Some critics wore pink bracelets and T-shirts that read, 'Save Girls' Sports.' During Friday's qualifying events, an aircraft circled above the stadium for more than an hour with a banner: 'No Boys in Girls' Sports!' Two groups that oppose transgender athletes participating in women's sports — the Independent Council on Women's Sports and Women Are Real — took credit for flying the banner. AB Hernandez, a transgender student at Jurupa Valley High School, competes in the high jump at the California high school track-and-field championships in Clovis, Calif., Saturday, May 31, 2025. Jae C. Hong/Associated Press California at center of national debate The federation's rule change reflected efforts to find a middle ground in the debate over trans girls' participation in youth sports. 'The CIF values all of our student-athletes and we will continue to uphold our mission of providing students with the opportunity to belong, connect, and compete while complying with California law,' the group said in a statement after announcing its rule change. A recent AP-NORC poll found that about 7 in 10 U.S. adults think transgender female athletes should not be allowed to participate in girls and women's sports at the high school, college or professional level. That view was shared by about 9 in 10 Republicans and roughly half of Democrats. The federation announced the change after Trump threatened to pull federal funding from California unless it bars trans female athletes from competing on girls teams. The federation said it decided on the change before then. The U.S. Department of Justice also said it would investigate the federation and the district that includes Hernandez's high school to determine whether they violated federal sex discrimination law. Advertisement California law allows trans students to compete on sex-segregated sports teams consistent with their gender identity. The federation said the rule opens the field to more 'biological female' athletes. One expert said the change may itself be discriminatory because it creates an extra spot for 'biological female' athletes but not for other trans athletes. The federation did not specify how it defines 'biological female' or how it would verify whether a competitor meets that definition. Sophia Lorey, outreach director with California Family Council, was among those at the stadium Saturday. She said the federation's policy is not a fix for the issue and only ends up causing more confusion. 'At the end of the day,' Lorey said, 'it shows the girls that we know this is wrong and we're still letting it happen to you.' Hernandez told the publication Capital & Main this month that she cannot worry about critics. 'I'm still a child, you're an adult, and for you to act like a child shows how you are as a person,' she said. Other students break records California's championship stands out from that of other states because of the sheer number of competitors. The state had the second-largest number of students participating in outdoor track and field in the nation during the 2023-2024 school year, behind Texas, according to a survey by the National Federation of State High School Associations. The boys 100-meter heats also were a highlight, with junior Jaden Jefferson of De La Salle High School in Concord finishing in 10.01 seconds Friday, 0.19 seconds faster than a meet record set in 2023. But he fell just shy of making it count as a meet record with a final time of 10.27 seconds in Saturday's final. Advertisement Athletes set new meet records in several events, including boys and girls relay races, hurdle competitions and the boys pole vault. Associated Press writer Susan Montoya Bryan in Albuquerque, New Mexico, contributed to this report.
Fox News
3 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Plane flying 'No Boys in Girls' Sports' banner over track meet goes viral as trans athlete dominates
A plane that flew a banner that read "No Boys in Girls' Sports!" over the California track and field state championship prelims at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Clovis on Friday set the internet ablaze. The display, which was organized by the women's outreach groups, Women are Real and the Independent Council for Women's Sports (ICONS), drew strong reactions amid national controversy over trans athlete AB Hernandez competing in the girls' competition. Many supporters of the movement to protect women's and girls' sports praised the stunt on social media, including former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines. Hernandez went on to claim first place in long jump, triple jump and high jump, beating out all the female competitors, and will now compete for the state title in the finals on Saturday. However, due to recent CIF rule changes, the girls who would normally finish one spot out of advancing to Saturday's finals will qualify since Hernandez took a spot. The CIF instituted these rule changes in the days leading up to the event amid mass backlash, threats of federal funding cuts by President Donald Trump and a Department of Justice investigation against the state. Friday's events also featured one arrest, as police confirmed to Fox News Digital that a pro-LGBTQ protester was apprehended after breaking the car windows of another attendee. "This afternoon at 3:55PM, a disturbance between two adults occurred at the intersection of Nees/Minnewawa. One adult on the sidewalk and one in a vehicle at the intersection became involved in a disturbance that turned physical. During the disturbance, one of them used pepper spray against the other. EMS was called and one of the adults was arrested," a statement read. The person has been arrested for assault with a weapon and obstructing police, according to Sergeant Chris Hutchison. "We don't have room for violence or property damage or anything like that," Hutchison. Activists on both sides will return to Veteran's Memorial Stadium on Saturday for the final round, as Hernandez looks to finish off a dominant and controversial postseason run under a heated national spotlight. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Fox News
4 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
California track and field championship sees arrest and aerial banner amid transgender controversy
The California track and field state championship prelim round in Clovis on Friday was a scene of conflicting beliefs and even police intervention amid an ongoing controversy involving a trans athlete competing in the girls' category. At least one person was arrested, the Clovis Police Department confirmed Fox News Digital. The person arrested was a protester who is accused of shattering a car window with a flag pole. The department confirmed the person arrested was an LGBTQ activist. "This afternoon at 3:55PM, a disturbance between two adults occurred at the intersection of Nees/Minnewawa. One adult on the sidewalk and one in a vehicle at the intersection became involved in a disturbance that turned physical. During the disturbance, one of them used pepper spray against the other. EMS was called and one of the adults was arrested," a statement read. The person has been arrested for assault with a weapon and obstructing a police, according to Sergeant Chris Hutchison. "We don't have room for violence or property damage or anything like that," Hutchison. Meanwhile, a plane flying a banner that read "no boys in girls' sports" passed over the California track and field championship Friday in Clovis. Footage provided to Fox News Digital by California activist Beth Bourne showed the plan flying overhead at Buchanan High School's Veterans Memorial Stadium. The stunt was organized by two women's advocacy group, Women are Real and the Independent Council for Women's Sports. "California is beginning to reap the consequences of defying federal law and brazenly harming girls," said Kim Jones, co-founder of ICONS in a press release announcing the aerial banner. "How long will Governor Newsom and legislators in this state continue to prioritize granting a few boys the right to take opportunities and recognition away from girls? Not one single boy should ever be in girls' sports. It's the easiest problem in the world to solve—and the most brazen public 'screw you' to female athletes by Democrat leadership. Since when do we tell a single boy he is more important than every girl in the competition? That he has the right to ruin sports for all of them? It's time for California to pay and it's time to right these wrongs." Witnesses at the event told Fox News Digital that pro-transgender protesters attended the event in support of transgender athlete AB Hernandez. The meet and the California Interscholastic Federation's (CIF) entire track and field postseason has been under a national microscope in recent weeks. Trans athlete AB Hernandez of Jurupa Valley High School has dominated the girls' track and field postseason in 2025, prompting national backlash and even the attention of President Donald Trump. Trump sent a Truth Social post on Tuesday morning, warning the state and Gov. Gavin Newsom of potential funding cuts and orders to local authorities to prevent a trans athlete from competing in the girls' category. Then the Department of Justice announced it would launch an investigation into the CIF and California Attorney General Rob Bonta over the state's law that allows biologically male trans athletes to compete with girls and women on Wednesday. The CIF announced a pair of rule changes on Tuesday and Wednesday in response to the backlash, expanding the size of the competitor pool and even handing out medals to any "biological female" athlete displaced by a transgender athlete at the meet. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Fox News
10-02-2025
- Sport
- Fox News
Nike, NFL women's sports Super Bowl commercials draw backlash amid national trans athlete controversies
As America's sports world remains locked in an ongoing culture war over the presence of trans athletes in women's sports, this year's Super Bowl ad slate became a battleground. Two commercials in particular drew the ire of many who advocate for protecting female athletes from trans inclusion. One ad that drew the outrage was directly from the NFL and boasted one of the longest run times of the entire night. The league's "Leave The Past Behind" spot, which intended to promote the spread of girls' flag football to more high schools across the country, offended some with its portrayal of a female flag football player outperforming male players. Many critics took issue with the commercial for promoting imagery of females competing evenly and more superior to males. The notion that female athletes are not at a physical disadvantage compared to their male counterparts is often used in arguments promoting trans inclusion in women's sports. The women's advocacy group "Women Are Real" slammed the ad for promoting that notion in a reply on X. "I hate this ad with all my heart. We know we can't compete against a team of men. It's a lie. And it's a slap in the face of every phenomenal female athlete. Women's sports is about female excellence. Leave the men out of this," the advocacy group's X account wrote in response, and later posted more replies. "Support your daughter's development as a female athlete. Don't compare her to boys this will only discourage her. This ad is a lie that serves as a slap in the face of all hardworking female athletes. Women's sports is about female excellence. Leave men out of it." Marshi Smith, the co-founder of the legal advocacy group the Independent Council on Women's Sports, called out the NFL for its ad in her own post on X. "Why is the world obsessed with showing women playing sports against men?" Smith wrote. "Give us our own [God d---] sports and stop comparing us." Casey Caston, founder of the marriage-counseling website Marriage 365, criticized the ad for showing "unrealistic" imagery. "I love women's sports, but this is completely unrealistic and disrespects gender differences that exist," Caston wrote on X, later adding, "Women weren't created to do everything a man CAN do. Women were created to do everything a man CAN'T do." Still, the commercial was praised by other social media users for its message of trying to spread girls' flag football to other schools, overlooking its imagery. The other commercial that outraged advocates opposed to trans inclusion came from Nike, but for a deeper-seated reason. The sportswear juggernaut debuted its first Super Bowl commercial in 27 years, featuring a star-studded lineup of women athletes including Caitlin Clark, Sha'Carri Richardson, Jordan Chiles and JuJu Watkins. However, many critics were quick to call out Nike for its official company stance in supporting trans athletes competing in women's sports. Former NCAA swimmer and current conservative activist Riley Gaines slammed Nike's ad, while in the same breath promoted the startup sportswear ad XX-XY Athletics, which specializes in activist apparel with messaging protecting female athletes from trans inclusion. "Ditch Nike Support XX-XY Athletics," Gaines wrote in a re-share of the commercial on X. Gaines is the first brand ambassador for XX-XY Athletics. The startup company's founder, former U.S. gymnast and Levi's executive Jennifer Sey, also called out Nike for the ad while promoting her own brand in a series of posts on X. "You're so full of it. The only thing female athletes are told they can't do is stand up for the integrity of their sports, for keeping men out of women's sports. Literally, that's the only thing," Sey wrote in response to the commercial on X. Famed sports broadcaster and journalist Michelle Tafoya also called out Nike while promoting Sey's brand in a series of posts on X. "Nike is too late to this party. And they're stuck in stereotypical language from about 25 years ago," Tafoya wrote, later adding, "What a waste of ad dollars." Data suggests the vast majority of Americans, including most Democrats, are opposed to allowing trans athletes to compete in women's and girls' sports. A recent New York Times/Ipsos survey found the vast majority of Americans, including a majority of Democrats, do not think transgender athletes should be permitted to compete in women's sports. Of the 2,128 people polled, 79% said biological males who identify as women should not be allowed to participate in women's sports. Of the 1,025 people who identified as Democrats or leaning Democrat, 67% said transgender athletes should not be allowed to compete with women. Nearly 70% of Americans say biological men should not be permitted to compete in women's sports, according to a Gallup poll last year. In June, a survey conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago asked respondents whether transgender athletes of both sexes should be permitted to participate in sports leagues that correspond to their preferred gender identity instead of their biological sex. In that survey, 65% answered that it should never or rarely be allowed. When those polled were asked specifically about adult transgender female athletes competing in women's sports, 69% opposed it. President Donald Trump recently took executive action to address the issue, signing the "No Men in Women's Sports" executive order" on Feb. 5. However, some states have indicated they will refuse to follow the order and continue allowing biological males to participate and share locker rooms with female athletes, including California and Minnesota. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
