Protests broke out at the California high school track and field championships, resulting in at least one arrest, as a transgender athlete stormed ahead of her female rivals.
Controversy continued Friday as AB Hernandez of Jurupa Valley, who is a biological male, competed at theCaliforniaInterscholastic Federationstate finals, despite sparking a furious wave of backlash this week.
And the 17-year-old’s participation in the meet resulted in shocking scenes when at least one protestor was reportedly detained by Clovis Police Department.
The person, said to be an LGBTQ activist, is accused of shattering a car window with a flag pole, according to Fox news.
They have been arrested for assault with a weapon and obstructing a police, according to Sergeant Chris Hutchison, who said the department doesn’t ‘have room for violence.’
‘This afternoon at 3:55PM, a disturbance between two adults occurred at the intersection of Nees/Minnewawa. One adult on the sidewalk and one in a vehicle at the intersection became involved in a disturbance that turned physical. During the disturbance, one of them used pepper spray against the other. EMS was called and one of the adults was arrested,’ a statement, via the outlet, read.
A banner protesting a transgender athlete’s participation in the California high school track-and-field championships was flown over the meet in Clovis Friday
AB Hernandez of Jurupa Valley, who is a biological male, qualified for thre event finals
The transgender athlete is pictured competing in the high jump at Buchanan High School
Trans athlete Hernandez made headlines after beating her biologically female opponents at the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section Masters Meet last weekend for a spot in this week’s State Championships
And she continued to controversially dominate as the preliminary qualifying events for the state finals kickstarted at Buchanan High School, Clovis on Friday afternoon.
Hernandez sealed her place in three finals – high jump, long jump and triple jump – which will take place Saturday, after coming out on top in all preliminary heats.
Shefinished the triple jump with a mark close to 41 feet, nearly 10 inches ahead of her closest competitor, San Francisco Bay Area junior Kira Gant Hatcher.
Hernandez also led in the long jump with a mark close to 20 feet to advance to the final. She advanced in the high jump, clearing 5 feet, 5 inches with ease.
The prelim results now leave the transgender athlete in prime position to claim a podium finish over her opponents in Saturday’s finals.
However, her participation continued to spark outrage as many gathered to voice their furious opposition to the CIF’s decision to allow her to compete.
During the meet, which took place at the school’s Veterans Memorial Stadium in Clovis, a plane carrying a banner featuring the message ‘CIF: NO BOYS IN GIRLS’ SPORTS’ flew in circles overhead throughout Hernandez’s high jump event – her first of the day, which began at 3pm local time.
The banner action, arranged by women-led advocacy groups The Independent Council on Women’s Sports (ICONS) and Women Are Real (WAR), took aim at the CIF for ‘undermining the integrity of women’s sports.’
‘This is not equality. This is appeasement,’ said Julie Lane, spokesperson for Women Are Real, said in a statement to DailyMail.com. ‘Girls should not need a workaround or a second-tier medal ceremony to participate in their own sport.’
Her participation continued to spark outrage as protestors voiced their furious opposition
Hernandez sealed her place in the finals of high jump, long jump and triple jump events
Donald Trump had ordered California authorities to block her from competing in the meet
Meanwhile, a group of around 10 demonstrators gathered outside Veterans Memorial Stadium to protest Hernandez’s inclusion, according to the Orange County Register.
Some of them wore ‘Save Girls´ Sports’ T-shirts. At one point as Hernandez was attempting a high jump, someone in the stands yelled an insult.
‘I wouldn’t need to know a single thing about AB Hernandez other than the fact that AB Hernandez is male in a female competition,’ Blake Nestell, a Fresno resident, told the outlet at the event Friday.
Earlier this week, Donald Trump lambasted California as he threatened to yank federal funding to the state unless it adhered to his Executive Order titled Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.
Trump blasted California governor Gavin Newsom , who he called ‘Newscum,’ and called a transgender athlete’s sporting domination in the state ‘not fair and totally demeaning to women and girls.’
‘Please be advised that large scale federal funding will be held back, maybe permanently,’ Trump threatened on his Truth Social site.
Then, without citing a specific legal basis, Trump wrote that ‘I am ordering local authorities, if necessary, to not allow the transitioned person to compete in the State Finals. This is a totally ridiculous situation!!!’
‘California is beginning to reap the consequences of defying federal law andbrazenly harming girls,’ Kim Jones, co-founder of ICONS, also told DailyMail.com Friday. ‘How long will Governor Newsom and legislators in this state continue to prioritize granting a few boys the right to take opportunities and recognition away from girls?
Hernandez waiting to compete at the girl’s long jump during the CIF Southern Section Masters Meet on May 24, which allowed her to qualify for the state championships
Trump’s Executive Order Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports bars transgender female athletes from competing in women’s or girl’s sporting events – which caused Trump to say in his tirade against Hernandez that he would pull federal funding from California
‘Not one single boy should ever be in girls’ sports. It’s the easiest problem in the world to solve—and the most brazen public ‘screw you’ to female athletes by Democrat leadership. Since when do we tell a single boy he is more important than every girl in the competition? That he has the right to ruin sports for all of them? It’s time for California to pay and it’s time to right these wrongs.’
As the controversy surrounding her participation continues, Hernandez’s mom has been confronted by angry parents whose daughters are losing out on gold medals as a result.
But the mother of the besieged transgender track and field star came out firing as she lambasted the president.
Nereyda Hernandez heavily criticized the President’s ‘weapons of harm’ in utilizing the ‘Bible and your politics’ to attack people on his social media platform.
She also stated he needed to ‘open your heart and mind to learn about the LGBTQ+ community’.
The mother wrote: ‘From the people living these lives with courage, love and dignity. As a leader of this country, you have the power to unite, to educate, and to uplift rather than destroy.
‘Hate has no place in leadership and NO child, ESPECIALLY not MINE, should become the target of a national campaign of cruelty just because they are different. We need a president who protects ALL children, not just the ones that fit a political narrative.’
She ended by saying, ‘We must choose unity over division, love over hate, and humanity over politics.
AB Hernandez’s mom Nere has clapped back at President Trump after he railed on Truth Social about her qualifying for California’s track and field state finals as a transgender woman
Nereyda lambasted Trump on her Instagram where she advocates for LGBTQ+ rights for targeting her child in a ‘campaign of national cruelty’
‘My child is not a threat; SHE IS LIGHT!!! As AB’s mother, I will continue to stand by her, proudly fiercely, and unconditionally.’ At the end of the post, it was signed ‘AB’s Mom’ with a heart emoji.
Nereyda declined to give a comment to DailyMail.com but stated: ‘I’m sure you can understand where I am coming from.
‘My Primary responsibility is to protect AB’s wellbeing, privacy, and dignity and we have decided to respectfully decline an interview.’
Ahead of the State Championships, DailyMail.com went through the ‘meet program’.
AB Hernandez, as a girl in the Varsity Long Jump category, had a seed mark of 19′ 3.5′ and in the triple jump category 40′ 4.75′. If she, as a biological male, competed against the boys in this year’s championship, AB would not have even qualified in this weekend’s championships.
In track and field, a ‘seed mark’ refers to an athlete’s performance level, typically their fastest time or best distance achieved in a previous meet, used to arrange athletes into heats or sections for a competition.
This helps in creating fairer competition by grouping athletes with similar abilities together.
DailyMail.com can also reveal that AB’s name at birth was Abraham Delgado, born in Riverside, California, on August 4, 2008, according to court records filed by Nereyda in June 2012.
The records stated she petitioned the Riverside County courts to change Abraham’s last name from Delgado to Hernandez.
She lists Abraham’s father as JayDee Delgado from Riverside, California. DailyMail.com attempted to reach out to Abraham’s father, but he did not respond to requests for comment.