Published Mar 03, 2025 at 2:35 PM EST – Newsweek

My cmnt: A simple rule could be that if a boy (i.e., trans-girl) has gone thru puberty then he cannot compete against girls in sports. President Trump has already issued an EO banning boys from girls sports. There will certainly be hard cases (i.e., intersex athletes like Brittney Griner and other issues) but for 98% of all cases XY persons should not be competing against XX persons, and especially XY persons who have gone thru male puberty.

A transgender high school track star has recently won a triple jump by eight feet, sparking backlash across social media about transgender student athletes participating in girls sports.

Newsweek has reached out to Jurupa Valley High School via email for comment.

Why It Matters

The backlash follows an executive order signed by President Donald Trump aiming to bar transgender athletes from competing in girls’ and women’s sports.

The order allows federal agencies to withhold funding from organizations that do not comply with Title IX as interpreted by the Trump administration, which defines “sex” as the gender assigned at birth.

“This is so wrong” — AB Hernandez, a boy pretending to be a girl, is dominating California high school girls track and field. — Ladies, take a stand and walk away! pic.twitter.com/RDJCIMRMRQ— Kristin Sokoloff (@KSOKUNCENSORED) March 2, 2025

The inclusion of transgender athletes in women’s sports has faced increasing criticism from conservative groups, who argue it creates an unfair competitive advantage and raises safety concerns. The issue has become a central talking point in Trump’s reelection campaign, despite transgender athletes making up a small minority in college sports.

What To Know

In late February, AB Hernandez, a transgender junior at Jurupa Valley High School in California, competed in the girls track and field meet securing first place in the high jump (4 feet, 10 inches), long jump (17 feet, 6 inches) and triple jump (40 feet, 0.5 inches) at the Ontario Relays. That triple jump performance was eight feet further than the runner-up.

In addition, more recently, Hernandez competed in the Roosevelt Invitational on Saturday, also securing first place in the long jump and the triple jump.

This is not the first time Hernandez has positioned herself to possibly win a title as she previously finished third in the triple jump behind two seniors at last year’s outdoor track state championship meet.

Since the two competitions, conservatives have taken to social media to condemn the results and the high school due to Hernandez being transgender.

Collin Rugg, co-owner of conservative news site Trending Politics, took to X, formerly Twitter,

“Transgender high school track star demolishes the female competition by *8 feet* in the triple jump at a track meet in California. Wow, what an accomplishment. I’m sure it had nothing to do with being a biological male.”

In addition, the Riley Gaines Center posted a video on YouTube condemning Hernandez participating in the meet.

Gaines is a former collegiate swimmer-turned-anti-trans activist, who has advocated for banning transgender athletes from women’s sports.

The backlash comes after Trump signed an executive order last month banning transgender athletes from participating in women’s sports. The order, titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” directs federal agencies to enforce Title IX.

The directive grants federal agencies broad authority to penalize schools and athletic organizations that do not comply. The order also calls on state attorneys general to establish enforcement measures and legal strategies to uphold the new mandate.

Since the executive order, it has been left up to states to decide on whether high school sports will follow Trump’s order.

The Minnesota House of Representatives is set to vote on Monday on a bill that would ban transgender athletes from competing on girls’ sports teams. It comes as the Minnesota High School League has allowed students to participate on teams that best align with their gender identity for 10 years.

However, it is not expected that California, a Democratic state, will follow in Minnesota’s footsteps as the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) said last month it will continue to follow the state’s law that allows athletes to participate as whichever gender they identify.

“The CIF provides students with the opportunity to belong, connect, and compete in education-based experiences in compliance with California law [Education Code section 221.5. (f)] which permits students to participate in school programs and activities, including athletic teams and competitions, consistent with the student’s gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the student’s records,” a CIF statement said.

Meanwhile, according to an interview with Hernandez following the Ontario Relays, she is focused on continuing to do well in her upcoming meets, hoping to take her wins to state.

“I keep telling myself you are number one, it’s yours to lose. So if you lose it’s fine, but just keep that drive to get it back,” Hernandez said.