A recent win by a transgender athlete at a Portland high school track meet has reignited a fierce national debate about the fairness of biological males competing in girls’ sports. Lia Rose, a male student who now identifies as female, took first place in the girls’ varsity high jump at the Portland Interscholastic League Varsity Relays—just one year after finishing last while competing as a male on the boys’ junior varsity team.
This incident has many parents, students, and conservative lawmakers crying foul—calling it yet another example of how far progressive policies have gone in undermining women’s athletics.
From Bottom of the Boys’ Rankings to the Top of the Girls’ Podium
Lia Rose, formerly Zachary Rose, competed on the boys’ junior varsity track team in 2023, where he placed dead last in the high jump with a leap of just 4 feet, 6 inches. According to publicly available track results, Rose continued to compete as a male through 2024, achieving a personal best of 5 feet—still not enough to be competitive on the boys’ team.
But in 2025, Rose officially transitioned and began competing on the girls’ varsity team. His first-place finish at the April relays, with a jump of 4 feet, 8 inches, surpassed all female competitors by at least two inches. Not only did he win, but he did so with a height lower than what he achieved competing against boys—highlighting the physical advantages that biological males often retain even after transitioning.
Transgender Athlete Inclusion Is Undermining Women’s Sports
Supporters of women’s sports argue that allowing transgender athletes to compete in female categories creates an unfair playing field, erasing the hard work and opportunities for biological girls. Despite Rose’s modest improvement in jump height, the physiological advantage—bone structure, muscle mass, and lung capacity—was enough to outperform every girl in the event.
Title IX was originally established to protect girls’ access to fair and equal opportunities in education and athletics. Now, many argue that those protections are being dismantled in the name of “inclusion.” Rather than empowering girls, policies that allow biological males to compete against them are actively displacing them from podiums, scholarships, and even participation itself. If you remember, there was a transgender who won by more than 8 feet in the varsity girls triple jump!
This is not just a one-off case. In Connecticut, two biological males identifying as female swept state-level track events, depriving multiple girls of chances to advance to collegiate-level competitions. Across the nation, similar stories are cropping up—highlighting what many see as a dangerous trend that sacrifices fairness for political correctness.
Parents and Lawmakers Push Back Against Oregon Policies
Oregon’s current rules, enforced by the Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA), allow students to compete according to their “consistently asserted” gender identity. This policy, widely supported by progressive state leaders, is now under scrutiny. A Title IX complaint has been filed by parents and advocacy groups, arguing that Portland Public Schools and the OSAA are violating girls’ civil rights by allowing males in female sports.
In March, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights opened an investigation into these claims. Republican lawmakers in the state have pledged to introduce legislation to protect girls’ sports from what they see as ideological overreach and biological denial.
“Common sense tells us that males and females are different,” said Oregon State Representative Ed Diehl. “We’re not against anyone’s identity—but we are for fairness. Our girls should not be forced to compete against boys just because the school is afraid of being labeled transphobic.”
A National Issue That Won’t Go Away
The controversy surrounding Lia Rose’s win is only the latest example of how muddled and politically charged high school athletics have become. As long as states allow gender identity to override biological reality in sports, similar cases will continue to emerge—often at the direct expense of female athletes who lose out on wins, recognition, and scholarships.
The question now facing voters, lawmakers, and school boards is simple: should athletic competition be based on identity, or on biology? For millions of parents and athletes across the country, the answer is increasingly clear.
