A transgender high school runner won the slot to compete in the girls’ varsity track and field championship after having left the other female competitors in the dust during the semi-finals.
Aayden Gallagher, who identifies as a girl, dominated in the Portland Interscholastic League Championship Semi-Finals on Wednesday.
The 10th grader took first place in the girls 400 meter varsity run and second place in the 200 meter race, qualifying her for the finals at Lincoln High School.
However, Gallagher’s eligibility to compete in the girls league has sparked outrage in recent weeks after footage of her performance during Heat 1 of the Sherwood Need for Speed Classic last month was circulated online.
Former NCAA swimming championship Riley Gaines among those to publicly criticize the Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA), which regulates high school athletics in the state, and its policies.
Under current OSAA policies, students are permitted ‘to participate for the athletic or activity program of their consistently asserted gender identity.’
