California Governor Gavin Newsom’s administration has hatched a plan to widen the field at this weekend’s high school track-and-field championships as President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice investigates the participation of a transgender athlete.
California opened the event to more girls after transgender athlete AB Hernandez drew criticism for qualifying for the meet. The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) will now permit an extra competitor in three events featuring Hernandez.
The rule change is temporary, according to the CIF, and not a direct response to Trump’s recent online criticism of California state policy, Governor Newsom and the 16-year-old Hernandez.
Now, if a transgender athlete medals at this weekend’s state championships outside Fresno, their ranking will not displace a “biological female” student from medaling. So if Hernandez medals in the high jump, triple jump and long jump, the podium will include an additional competitor, who will also be awarded a medal.
The federation has not announced any plans to verify whether a competitor meets the definition of ‘biological female.’
The American Medical Association and American Psychiatric Association and American Psychological Association have both argued that gender is a spectrum and not a binary structure, as the White House argued in its January 20 executive order ‘defending women from gender ideology.’
‘California, under the leadership of Radical Left Democrat Gavin Newscum, continues to ILLEGALLY allow “MEN TO PLAY IN WOMEN’S SPORTS,”‘ Trump wrote on his social media platform. ‘This week a transitioned Male athlete, at a major event, won “everything,” and is now qualified to compete in the ‘State Finals’ next weekend.
‘As a Male, he was a less than average competitor,’ Trump continued in an apparent reference to Hernandez. ‘As a Female, this transitioned person is practically unbeatable. THIS IS NOT FAIR, AND TOTALLY DEMEANING TO WOMEN AND GIRLS.’
Trump then threatened to withhold federal funding ‘permanently’ if his executive order forbidding transgender athletes in girls and women’s sports isn’t followed.
Jurupa Valley’s AB Hernandez, a transgender student-athlete, stands atop the winner’s podium at the CIF Southern Section finals after winning the triple jump
AB Hernandez of Jurupa Valley watches during the girls high jump during the CIF Southern Section Division 3 Track and Field preliminaries on Saturday, May 10
The rule change is temporary, according to the CIF, and not a direct response to Trump’s recent online criticism of California state policy, Governor Newsom and the 16-year-old Hernandez
The President also ordered ‘local authorities, if necessary, to not allow the transitioned person to compete in the State Finals.’
Wednesday, the CIF said it’s extending access for more ‘biological female’ athletes to participate in this weekend’s championships. However, the change only applies to this competition.
‘Under this pilot entry process, any biological female student-athlete who would have earned the next qualifying mark for one of their Section’s automatic qualifying entries in the CIF State meet, and did not achieve the CIF State at-large mark in the finals at their Section meet, was extended an opportunity to participate in the 2025 CIF State Track and Field Championships,’ the CIF statement read.
‘The CIF believes this pilot entry process achieves the participation opportunities we seek to afford our student-athletes.’
A recent Associated Press poll found that 7 in 10 American adults want transgender female athletes banned from girls and women’s sports at the high school, college or professional level.
