Last Saturday, five female athletes in Yorba Linda stood before a crowd of parents, advocates, and elected officials with one demand: make the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) stop forcing girls to compete against boys. Governor Newsom responded by implying the protesters were trying to bully and “vilify individual kids”. The girls had a simple answer: We’re not attacking an athlete. We’re demanding accountability from the adults who make the rules.
The athlete at the center of the controversy, AB Hernandez, holds the top ranking in three girls’ events: long jump, high jump, and triple jump. Five female athletes spoke alongside Chino Valley Unified School District President and State Superintendent candidate Sonja Shaw and California Family Council Outreach Director Sophia Lorey, while statements from gubernatorial candidates Chad Bianco and Steve Hilton were also shared.
Hours later, the male athlete won the girls’ long jump and triple jump by wide margins and tied for first in the high jump, with Reese Hogan, one of the athletes who spoke out that morning.
Speaking at the press conference, Olivia Viola, a girls’ high jump athlete at Crean Lutheran High School, described her final two seasons as “a cloud of controversy.”
“Many of the girls I’ve spoken to are losing hope and realizing that the governor and CIF have turned their backs on them,” Viola said. “We are tired of men’s feelings being more important than our voices and our rights.”
Reese Hogan, another Crean athlete, lost last year’s long jump to the same competitor by four feet. She didn’t hold back on CIF: “They have never responded to me, never acknowledged my concerns, and never listened to the voices of female athletes who have directly been affected by these decisions.”
Hogan also announced plans to attend college out of state despite receiving Division I opportunities in California, citing concerns that California no longer protects women’s athletics.
Though Republican gubernatorial candidates Chad Bianco and Steve Hilton were unable to attend, they expressed support for girls-only sports.
“There is no place in girls’ sports for boys to compete against them,” read a statement from Republican gubernatorial candidate Chad Bianco. “It is ethically and morally wrong to allow them into locker rooms and restrooms.”
Hilton’s statement was equally pointed. “California’s leaders have failed to stand up for common sense on this issue, even though the overwhelming majority of parents agree that girls’ sports should be for girls.”
Sonja Shaw, also a statewide candidate, called on parents, specifically men, to speak out.
“This is a message to all dads across California,” she challenged. “Wake up. These are your daughters. This is the next generation. They should not be here having to fight for basic rights. They should not have to fight for their safety.”
Sophia Lorey, who organized the press conference, has a particular passion for protecting girls’ sports as a former CIF and collegiate athlete herself.
“These young women trained for years for this moment, and they deserve a level playing field,” she said. “The CIF’s policy doesn’t protect inclusion; it destroys it. Girls’ sports exist because women fought for them. We will fight for them again.”
CIF Bylaw 300D permits students to compete in athletics based on their gender identity. California Family Council contends that this policy conflicts with Title IX, the federal civil rights law enacted to ensure equal athletic opportunities for women and girls.
“As long as bylaw 300D remains in place, girls across California will continue losing placements, safety, and opportunities that they rightfully earned,” Lorey stated.
The press conference received national attention after Fox News sought comment from Governor Gavin Newsom. His office released a statement:
“The Governor has said discussions on this issue should be guided by fairness, dignity, and respect. He rejects the right wing’s cynical attempt to weaponize this debate as an excuse to vilify individual kids. The Governor’s position is simple: stand with all kids and stand up to bullies,” the statement read.
Lorey defended the female athletes at the press conference. “Shame on Governor Newsom for calling the girls behind me bullies. That is unacceptable. These girls are not bullies for defending fairness in female sports. They are courageous young women asking adults and leadership to protect the integrity of girls’ athletics.”
The athletes also objected to the governor’s characterization of their efforts in a TV interview last week.
“I don’t condone the bullying of this person,” Viola said on Fox News. “I think it is 100 percent the people in authority who are allowing it to happen and not this athlete. I don’t want the protest to be turned against this athlete. I want it to be turned against the people in authority and the adults who need to stand up for us, and CIF, who needs to stand up for female athletes and female sports.”
By the end of the day’s competition, Hernandez placed first in three girls’ jumping events. He recorded a long jump of 20 feet, 4¼ inches. Second and third place finished at 19 feet, 1½ inches and 18 feet, 7 inches — more than a foot behind first place.
The gap was even more pronounced in the triple jump. The winning mark was 42 feet, 4 inches, while the next-closest athletes recorded 39 feet, 7½ inches and 37 feet, 8 inches. Hernandez also tied for first in the high jump after clearing 5 feet, 2 inches, alongside Reese Hogan.
While CIF postseason rules typically advance only the top nine athletes in each event, ten athletes advanced in these three girls’ events, which included Hernandez, without public announcement or stated reason.
The events at Yorba Linda only reinforced what they had come to demonstrate: that biological differences matter in athletic competition, and that female athletes should not be forced to sacrifice fairness, placements, records, or opportunities to compete.
“We will continue speaking out, and we will continue refusing to accept this as the new normal because girls deserve fairness, girls deserve protection, and girls deserve a future where female sports remain for females only,” Lorey said.
