By Hudson Crozier, Daily Caller News Foundation | February 18, 2025
A male high school student dominated a girls’ pole vaulting competition in Maine after the state refused to comply with President Donald Trump’s order to separate sports by gender.
The student, who goes by Katie Spencer, jumped the highest out of his team at 11 feet, winning Greely High School a state championship but drawing outrage from women’s sports advocates. The Maine Principals’ Association announced three days earlier that it would continue allowing males who identify as transgender to take women’s sports titles despite the White House’s policies against it, WMTV8 reported.
Photos posted online and media coverage of the event confirm Spencer’s identity. He currently ranks in the top 10 for girls’ pole vaulting in the state.
“The decision by the Maine Principals’ Association to continue allowing male athletes to compete against female athletes in school athletic competitions is outrageous,” Maine State Rep. Laurel Libby, a Republican, said in a statement provided to the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Not only does their decision violate President Trump’s February 5 Executive Order but it jeopardizes the safety and privacy of female athletes, all while allowing male athletes to take medals, trophies, and podium spots away from women, effectively erasing them.”
“I urge the Trump Administration to move swiftly to ensure that female athletes in Maine can once again compete on a level playing field, preserving the integrity of women’s sports,” Libby said.
Trump’s Feb. 5 order, “Keeping Men Out Of Women’s Sports,” says schools receiving federal funds “cannot deny women an equal opportunity to participate in sports” under the landmark civil rights law known as Title IX by letting men with inherent biological advantages into women’s sports.
“Parents across Maine—and the country—are fed up with being ignored while their daughters are forced to compete against biological males,” the conservative American Parents’ Coalition told the DCNF. “The Maine Principals’ Association’s decision isn’t just unfair; it’s an affront to every parent who expects their child to have a level playing field and is at odds with President Trump’s Executive Order protecting girls’ sports.”
“Schools should be working alongside the Administration and supporting parents, not prioritizing politics,” the coalition said.
The Maine Principals’ Association did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Hudson Crozier is a contributor at the Daily Caller News Foundation
Original article link
