An Oregon high school boy who won the state championship in the girls’ 200-meter race on Saturday was booed by the crowd when he finished the race and again when he was crowned as the champion. The female competitors did not applaud Aayden Gallagher when he was crowned.
Look at the girls on the podium applauding when 2nd place (the rightful winner) is announced.
Then watch them when the boys name is announced.
Stop saying girls are okay with this because they aren't. This is heartbreaking and deeply regressive. https://t.co/VmjeTtwgIk pic.twitter.com/5o36MbMICD
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) May 19, 2024
Gallagher, a sophomore from McDaniel High School, finished first with a time of 23.83 seconds at the OSAA championships in Eugene. Aster Jones, from Roosevelt High School, finished second with a time of 24.023 and Sophia Castaneda of Newberg High School finished third with a time of 24.41. Gallagher finished second in the 400-meter finals, missing finishing first by only .15 of a second.
Last Wednesday, Gallagher qualified for the state event when he finished first in the 400-meter preliminary event and second in the 200-meter preliminary event at the Portland Interscholastic League Championship semifinals, the New York Post reported.
The Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA) states, “The OSAA endeavors to allow students to participate for the athletic or activity program of their consistently asserted gender identity while providing a fair and safe environment for all students. As with Rule 8.2 regarding Duration of Eligibility / Graduation, rules such as this one promotes harmony and fair competition among member schools by maintaining equality of eligibility and increase the number of students who will have an opportunity to participate in interscholastic activities. This policy was developed in consultation with the Oregon Department of Education (ODE).”
“Once a transgender student has notified the student’s school of their gender identity, the student shall be consistently treated as that gender for purposes of eligibility for athletics and activities, provided that if the student has tried out or participated in an activity, the student may not participate during that same season on a team of the other gender,” the OSAA adds.
After Gallagher competed in the girls’ varsity division at the Need for Speed Classic in Sherwood in mid-April, all 12 female Republican lawmakers in the Oregon State Legislature demanded the OSAA change its policy in a letter to Peter Weber, the executive director of the association. They asked him to “provide a solution to the families seeking answers about why the OSAA doesn’t feel girls’ sports should be a safe space for biological females to compete and succeed.”