Story perspectives

CIF Restores Female Runner-Up Gold, Trump Threatens Funding

5/19/2026

Summary

Story summary

The California Interscholastic Federation reinstated a pilot that awards extra gold medals to female runner-up when a transgender athlete wins.
AB Hernandez, 17, won high, long and triple jump at the CIF finals and shared the podium under the pilot.
Around 2,000 spectators protested, sparking a “Save Girls Sports” rally.
U.S. President Donald Trump warned federal funding could be withheld unless California ends the policy, calling the meet unfair competition.

History

Historical Context

After the IOC stopped universal sex testing in 1999 and issued the 2004 Stockholm Consensus requiring a hormone regimen, World Athletics suspended testosterone testing following Dutee Chand’s 2015 CAS ruling and later mandated medical alteration for intersex athletes in 2018. Those policies underpin the California Interscholastic Federation’s 2024 reinstatement of its female runner-up pilot after a transgender winner, reviving budget disputes.

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Story summary

The California Interscholastic Federation reinstated a pilot that awards extra gold medals to female runner-up when a transgender athlete wins.
AB Hernandez, 17, won high, long and triple jump at the CIF finals and shared the podium under the pilot.
Around 2,000 spectators protested, sparking a “Save Girls Sports” rally.
U.S. President Donald Trump warned federal funding could be withheld unless California ends the policy, calling the meet unfair competition.

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