More than half of the Camas High School girls cross country team walked the first 50 meters of a recent race, with arms linked, in protest of a male athlete who has competed in five recent races in the female category.
Logan Mihailoff, a junior at Camas, competed in the male category as recently as September 5 before he decided to switch groups and race against the girls, The Columbian reported.
Holly Burns is one of the female students who refused to compete in light of Mihailoff’s participation. “Women already had to fight to have their own team and race,” she told the outlet. “I just think it’s unfair.”
Her mother, Sarah Burns, held a sign at the race reading “Keep Girls Sports Fair + Female.”
“I just think it’s unfair,” Sarah Burns said. “A biological boy has bigger lung capacity, more muscles and longer legs so they can run faster. They’ll kick a girl who has worked really hard out of a spot she deserves.”
The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association’s policy currently allows athletes to compete on the team that corresponds with their “gender identity.” Camas High School principal Travis Drake previously said the school will continue to align its policy with the state’s sports governing board.
“In systems like this and in positions like the one I have, it’s important to follow the law,” Drake told The Columbian. “This is the law in the state of Washington.”
National Review reached out to the school, but did not hear back by the time of publication.
In November, Washington voters will decide on Initiative 638, a proposed ban on male students competing in girls K-12 sports. If passed, the initiative would require verification of an athlete’s biological sex from her healthcare provider.
When Mihailoff competed in the male category earlier this season, he placed 76th out of 301 runners. After he began competing on the girls team, Mihailoff became one of the team’s fastest runners, not only outpacing other female runners from Camas, but also running a personal best time.
The thirteen girls, in their protest of Tuesday’s race, ultimately forfeited the competition.
“I actually cannot believe high school girls are still having to take it upon themselves to enact change against an obvious injustice,” Riley Gaines, an athlete and outspoken advocate against allowing men in female spaces, said in a post on X. “Not the adults, or the coaches, or the Governor, or the sporting governing body…the 14 year old girls.”