A biological male competing in the girls' division took the silver medal in the 1,600 meter run at the North Coast Meet of Champions of California, depriving the female runner who finished in fourth position a spot in the state finals, reports say.
Athena Ryan, a junior at Sonoma Academy, finished second in the qualifying meet on May 20.
Adeline Johnson, a senior at Branson High School, finished in fourth place, one spot shy of qualifying for the state finals. In a video posted by the Independent Council on Women’s Sports, Johnson can be seen giving a thumbs down as the athletes receive their medals.
A spectator at the meet noted that Ryan, a junior, "blew by female seniors in the field (who are) signed to run at NCAA Division 1 schools this coming fall."
In an interview with MileSplit after the race, Ryan said: "I wasn't expecting that. I dropped like 17 seconds on my season's best in the past two weeks."
Ryan's time, 4:55.91, would have been last place in the boys' division. The winner in the boys' 1,600, Mateo Malko-Allen, finished at 4:11.44. The 29th and last place time in the boys' prelims was 4:46.54.
Former Olympian Caitlyn Jenner slammed the idea of a trans teen finishing second in the race, tweeting: “This is wrong! As ‘somewhat’ of a track star myself, and a trans person, THIS IS WRONG!!! HELP ME PUSH BACK!”
“And FYA trans ppl you are being used by the radical gender ideology cult as political pawns. That’s all you are to them,” Jenner added in a follow-up tweet.
Ryan isn’t the only biological male that will be competing in the 1,600 meters in the girls' division at the state championships. Lorelei Barrett, a junior at the Buckley School, has also qualified.
The California Interscholastic Federation’s rules read: “All students should have the opportunity to participate in CIF athletics and/or activities in a manner that is consistent with their gender identity. Athletes will participate in programs consistent with their gender identity or the gender most consistently expressed.”
🏃Trans-identifying male, Athena Ryan (Jr) took 2nd today in the “Girls 1600m” at a CA State Championship qualifier meet in Dublin, CA.
Ryan beamed while 4th place senior, Adeline Johnson gave a thumb down after losing the chance to advance to the State Championships by 1 spot. pic.twitter.com/iY2InxvhJt — ICONS (@icons_women) May 21, 2023
More boys competing in girls' races and stealing girls' medals. Cheating!
<Trans-identifying male, Lorelei Barrett is headed to the @CIFState CA track championships next weekend, along with male Athena Ryan, who also qualified in the “Girls 1600m” race.>pic.twitter.com/EYUYJhs1hL — Kemi Owonibi (@KemiOwonibi) May 22, 2023
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