Oregon, My Oregon

 Capt. Ed at Hat Hair, In Oregon, the Best Girl In Track Is ... A Boy

As Guy Benson quipped on Twitter, oh look -- that thing that never happens has happened again. In one sense, though, this story from Portland, Oregon qualifies as a success story. What else can one call an effort by which a last-place finisher in track meets at the junior varsity level goes on to dominate at the varsity level?

Of course, that's not difficult to achieve when a biological male switches to compete against high-school girls:

Lia Rose, who reportedly used to compete as Zachary, won the high jump at the Portland Interscholastic League Varsity Relays with a height of 4 feet, 8 inches, beating the second-place finisher by two inches.

According to athletic.net, while competing against JV boys May 3, 2023, Zachary Rose finished 11th out of 11 competitors with a jump of 4 feet, 6 inches. ...

In 2024, Lia mostly competed against JV boys, with a top finish of second place and a personal record of 5 feet even.

And that's not the first time this season that a biological male has beaten female athletes in Portland. Fox News also notes that Ada Gallagher dominated girls in two races last month:

Lia’s victory comes roughly two weeks after Ada Gallagher, a trans track athlete in the Portland area, blew out the competition.

Gallagher, a state champion last year, finished at 57.62 in the 400 meters, with Franklin High School’s Kinnaly Souphanthong coming in second at 1:05.72. Gallagher’s teammate, Quinnan Schaefer, was behind Souphanthong at 1:07.13.

In the 200-meter race, Gallagher finished in first place at 25.76, followed by teammate Addyson Skyles at 27.31.

Oregon likely has a policy of allowing "trans" athletes to compete in the competition of their choice. One has to notice that the choice always seems to be having males compete against females rather than girls entering competitions for boys. And it's no small wonder, either, given the obvious advantages males have in competing against females. If there are any biological females entering male competitions, we don't read much about it -- because they can't compete fairly against them.

Except on the uneven parallel bars.  

Someday we will look back on this era and laugh. Not today.