Donald Trump Jr. has waded into the debate on transgender student-athletes, calling the first- and second-place finishes by two transgender girls at the Connecticut girl’s state track championship a “grave injustice.”
Terry Miller, of Bloomfield High School, and Andraya Yearwood, of Cromwell High School, won the top two spots in the 55-meter dash, with Miller setting a new state indoor record of 6.95 seconds, and Yearwood finishing in 7.01 seconds, according to The Associated Press. The third-place winner, Chelsea Mitchell, of Canton High School, finished with a time of 7.23 seconds.
Miller also won the 300-meter dash in a time of 40.13 seconds, ahead of her cisgender teammate Jillian Mars.
But many parents, as well as social conservatives, have objected to Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference’s policy allowing transgender athletes to compete for sports teams based on their gender identity.
Both athletes have garnered negative attention, with many arguing that the girls’ biological makeup gives them an unfair advantage over cisgender women athletes.
Donald Trump Jr. is one such critic, tweeting that he feels “sorry” for the other competitors.
I feel so sorry for the young ladies who trained their whole lives to be the best in their state and to hopefully attain scholarships etc etc… this is a grave injustice. https://t.co/cduhojza4B
Selina Soule, the eighth-place finisher at the state meet, told the AP that she was happy for Yearwood and Miller for being true to themselves, but felt that she missed out on an opportunity to compete in front of college coaches because she missed the cutoff for the New England Championships by two places — places that were taken by Miller and Yearwood.
“We all know the outcome of the race before it even starts; it’s demoralizing,” Soule said.
Joanna Harper, a medical physicist who studies transgender health care and a transgender runner herself, argues that athletes’ participation in sports should be based on their hormone levels, which will vary based on individual health factors and the length of time that a person has been transitioning.
“The gender identity doesn’t matter, it’s the testosterone levels,” said Harper. “Trans girls should have the right to compete in sports. But cisgender girls should have the right to compete and succeed, too. How do you balance that? That’s the question.”
But Harper also warned that the issue cannot be solved using a one-size-fits-all mentality. For instance, she wrote in an op-ed for The Washington Post, when it comes to long distance running, cisgender athletes are on equal footing with transgender athletes who have successfully transitioned. But when it comes to sprinting, those with more muscle mass may have an advantage.
Transgender females may gain advantages, due to their height, in sports like basketball, but taller individuals would be less likely to succeed in a sport like gymnastics.
When it comes to allowing Miller and Yearwood to compete against cisgender girls, CIAC Executive Director Glenn Lungarini defended the interscholastic league’s policy.
“This is about someone’s right to compete,” he said. “I don’t think this is that different from other classes of people, who, in the not too distant past, were not allowed to compete. I think it’s going to take education and understanding to get to that point on this issue.”
He also said the CIAC is not in a position to perform hormone testing on athletes. As a result, the league relies on schools to tell them how students identify.
The Trump administration has filed a lawsuit against the California Department of Education and the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) -- the body that oversees high school sports in the state -- over policies allowing transgender athletes to compete on teams matching their gender identity.
In the lawsuit, the Department of Justice claims California education officials and the CIF discriminated against female student-athletes by allowing athletes assigned male at birth to compete against them -- depriving girls of equal educational and athletic opportunities in violation of Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sex-based discrimination in education. (Under President Joe Biden, the federal government interpreted the law to also protect students from discrimination based on gender identity, not just biological sex.)
Nico Young made history on July 31 by winning the 10,000-meter final at the USATF Outdoor Championships, becoming the first out gay man to claim a U.S. track and field title.
The 23-year-old from Camarillo, California, secured his historic win with a time of 29:02.12, edging Olympic bronze medalist Grant Fisher after closing the final mile in 3:57.05 and his last lap in a blistering 56.54 seconds.
A former standout at Northern Arizona University, Young won both the 5,000- and 3,000-meter races at the 2024 NCAA Division I Indoor Championships. He also qualified for the Paris Olympics by placing third in the 10,000 meters at last year’s U.S. trials, eventually finishing 12th at the Games with a time of 26:58.11, according to Forbes.
The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee has changed its eligibility rules to bar transgender women from competing in female-designated sporting events, aligning with an executive order issued by President Donald Trump in February.
The new rule, outlined in the committee's "Athlete Safety Policy," offers few details about how the transgender ban will be enforced. It does not use the word "transgender," and refers to Trump's executive order only by its number, not by its title, "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports."
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Donald Trump Jr. has waded into the debate on transgender student-athletes, calling the first- and second-place finishes by two transgender girls at the Connecticut girl’s state track championship a “grave injustice.”
Terry Miller, of Bloomfield High School, and Andraya Yearwood, of Cromwell High School, won the top two spots in the 55-meter dash, with Miller setting a new state indoor record of 6.95 seconds, and Yearwood finishing in 7.01 seconds, according to The Associated Press. The third-place winner, Chelsea Mitchell, of Canton High School, finished with a time of 7.23 seconds.
Miller also won the 300-meter dash in a time of 40.13 seconds, ahead of her cisgender teammate Jillian Mars.
But many parents, as well as social conservatives, have objected to Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference’s policy allowing transgender athletes to compete for sports teams based on their gender identity.
Both athletes have garnered negative attention, with many arguing that the girls’ biological makeup gives them an unfair advantage over cisgender women athletes.
Donald Trump Jr. is one such critic, tweeting that he feels “sorry” for the other competitors.
Selina Soule, the eighth-place finisher at the state meet, told the AP that she was happy for Yearwood and Miller for being true to themselves, but felt that she missed out on an opportunity to compete in front of college coaches because she missed the cutoff for the New England Championships by two places — places that were taken by Miller and Yearwood.
“We all know the outcome of the race before it even starts; it’s demoralizing,” Soule said.
The issue of transgender inclusion in sports is often a delicate one, as evidenced by the backlash spurred by tennis star Martina Navratilova after she argued that transgender women should not be allowed to compete against cisgender women because they have an unfair biological advantage.
Joanna Harper, a medical physicist who studies transgender health care and a transgender runner herself, argues that athletes’ participation in sports should be based on their hormone levels, which will vary based on individual health factors and the length of time that a person has been transitioning.
“The gender identity doesn’t matter, it’s the testosterone levels,” said Harper. “Trans girls should have the right to compete in sports. But cisgender girls should have the right to compete and succeed, too. How do you balance that? That’s the question.”
But Harper also warned that the issue cannot be solved using a one-size-fits-all mentality. For instance, she wrote in an op-ed for The Washington Post, when it comes to long distance running, cisgender athletes are on equal footing with transgender athletes who have successfully transitioned. But when it comes to sprinting, those with more muscle mass may have an advantage.
Transgender females may gain advantages, due to their height, in sports like basketball, but taller individuals would be less likely to succeed in a sport like gymnastics.
When it comes to allowing Miller and Yearwood to compete against cisgender girls, CIAC Executive Director Glenn Lungarini defended the interscholastic league’s policy.
“This is about someone’s right to compete,” he said. “I don’t think this is that different from other classes of people, who, in the not too distant past, were not allowed to compete. I think it’s going to take education and understanding to get to that point on this issue.”
He also said the CIAC is not in a position to perform hormone testing on athletes. As a result, the league relies on schools to tell them how students identify.
See also: Judge grants citizenship to twin sons of Los Angeles gay couple
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