Oregon is now facing its second lawsuit in just one month over the contentious issue of biologically male transgender athletes competing in girls’ high school sports.
Two top high school track athletes, Alexa Anderson and Reese Eckard, filed a lawsuit against the Oregon School Athletics Association (OSAA) following a viral incident at a state championship meet on May 31. During the awards ceremony, Anderson and Eckard refused to stand on the podium with a transgender athlete, drawing national attention after video footage spread online.
Anderson told Fox News that event officials instructed the girls to step off the podium and out of frame for the official photos.
The lawsuit claims OSAA excluded them from medal ceremony photos and withheld their medals altogether, violating their First Amendment rights.
“I recently competed against a biological male at my state track and field meet,” Anderson told Fox News Digital. “Another girl and I decided to step down from the podium in protest to the unfair competition environment. I’m fighting to keep women’s sports XX and prevent biological males in women’s sports from becoming normalized. By doing this, I hope future generations of female athletes will have a safe and fair opportunity to excel.”
The girls are represented by the America First Policy Institute (AFPI).
“These young women earned their place on the podium—and the right to express themselves,” said Jessica Hart Steinmann, AFPI’s general counsel. “Instead of respecting their viewpoint that girls’ sports should be for girls only, Oregon officials sidelined them. The First Amendment protects the right to dissent—school officials don’t get to reprimand students who refuse to agree with their beliefs.”
AFPI is also representing two other Oregon track athletes, Maddie Eischen and Sophia Carpenter, in a separate lawsuit filed against the Oregon Department of Education over policies permitting transgender athletes to compete in girls’ sports.
That case stems from an April 18 meet where Carpenter and Eischen withdrew from competition after learning they would be facing a trans athlete. Their lawsuit describes the emotional toll the situation took.
“For [Carpenter], the psychological and emotional weight of that moment became overwhelming—she felt helpless, demoralized, and betrayed by the institutions and adults charged with protecting her equal opportunity for fair play,” the suit claims.
Eischen described the incident as “traumatic” and said she never expected to find herself in such a position. Carpenter echoed those feelings, saying she broke down in tears on the ride home after the meet.
Despite concerns over potential backlash, both girls are moving forward with their case, which could draw significant national attention as the debate over trans athletes in women’s sports continues.
