Transgender athlete AB Hernandez dominates three jumping events at California postseason track meet
YORBA LNDA, California. — California’s postseason track and field meet on Saturday began with a “Save Girls Sports” rally outside the gates and ended familiarly with an athlete walking off the field in jumping events, highlighting growing concerns about competitive fairness in girls sports.
The CIF Southern Section Division 3 prelims held Saturday in Yorba Linda drew attention before the competition began when demonstrators protested California’s policy allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls’ sports.
Internally, the focus was on the jumping events, where biological male AB Hernandez, a senior from Jurupa Valley, competed against women and finished first in all three events with dominant performances.
Rally breaks out at CALIFORNIA GIRLS’ TRACK OVER TRANS CASE BETWEEN THE WHITE HOUSE AND NEWSOM’S OFFICE
Hernandez, a transgender multi-sport athlete (she previously participated in girls volleyball), won the Long Jump Division 3 Prelim and the Triple Jump Division 3 Prelim by wide margins and finished first in the High Jump Division 3 Prelim with Reese Hogan, an athlete with past ties to Hernandez.
He separated the field as a result of the long jump. Hernandez logged a distance of 20 feet, 4 1/4 inches. The next closest finishers reached 19 feet, 1 1/2 inches and 18 feet, 7 inches.
More than a foot separated first from second.
ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. GET THE DON’T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW!
The triple jump highlighted the inequality. Hernandez recorded 42 feet, 4 inches. The runners-up finished the race with 39 feet, 7 1/2 inches and 37 feet, 8 inches.
The increased interest in the subject was also seen in the stands of Yorba Linda High School, which hosted the preliminaries.
‘Save Girls Sports’ activists at a rally in California on Saturday, May 9, 2026. (Alejandro Avilla from OutKick)
A grandparent who was there to support Moorpark High School noted how familiar the situation had become.
“It happened last year and I thought it would be over, but this is California,” Grandma and Grandpa said with a shrug.
Another parent, a father from Yucca Valley, expressed general agreement with concerns about transgender athletes.
Trans athlete AB Hernandez swept the jumps at the CIF Division 3 prelims and fueled the ongoing fairness debate. (OutKick/Alejandro Avila) ((OutKick/Alejandro Avila))
“I think they should have their own section. I just don’t like bullying a kid,” he said.
The high jumper got past rival Reese Hogan and back on course.
Hernandez and Hogan cleared 5 feet 2 inches to finish in a tie for first place.
Hogan had previously attracted attention after stepping into the first-place podium spot following an event won by Hernandez; this was a move defended by professional women’s sports advocates as a clarification on who should hold this position.
On Saturday, the two athletes met again at the top of the rankings and the result was a draw.
Outside the venue, the previous rally, led by former NCAA athlete Sophia Lorey, focused on the balance of fairness and competition in girls sports.
In an individual sport outside of any team dynamic, the scoreboard made the fairness argument hard to ignore.
Hernandez’s notes told the story: long jump of 20 feet, 4 1/4 inches, triple jump of 42 feet, 4 inches and high jump of 5 feet, 2 inches.
Hernandez competed under rules that California has allowed for more than a decade. Those rules are at the center of a growing dispute between state officials and federal leaders over Title IX and women’s sports. This battle has now moved to the courts, with the Department of Justice suing California over its transgender athlete policies.
CLICK TO DOWNLOAD FOX NEWS APPLICATION
In response, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office distanced the governor from the case, emphasizing that he was not named in defense of the state’s existing law.
Saturday’s prelims in Yorba Linda added more data to the growing effort to keep biological males out of girls’ events.
The protest set the tone early, and by the end of the day the debate had moved off the sidewalk and onto the results board, where the results would have real consequences.
Send us your thoughts: alejandro.avila@outkick.com Follow on /x: @alejandroaveela
