Oregon high school transgender runner Aayden Gallagher competed in several girls’ events at the Portland Interscholastic League Championship semifinals this week, and she performed extremely well, finishing in first place in one of the event she competed in and second in another.
Aayden Gallagher finished in first place in the 400-meter preliminary event with a time of 56.14 seconds and finished in second in the 200-meter preliminary event with a time of 24.49 seconds. As a result of her strong performance, she qualified for the finals in both events.
Gallagher is allowed to participate against other girls due to a policy from the Oregon School Activities Association which allows for the participation of transgender girls and women in high school sports in the state.
“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,” the policy states according to Fox News.
“As with Rule 8.2 regarding Duration of Eligibility / Graduation, rules such as this one promote 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.”
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