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Alexa Anderson, the former Oregon high school track and field athlete who made waves when she refused to share a podium with a transgender competitor earlier this year, had a message for girls still experiencing the same issues Monday.
While polls suggest most Americans believe women should only compete against women in sports, not all states have complied with President Donald Trump’s executive order banning transgender athletes from competing against the gender with which they identify.
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Alexa Anderson is a former high school girls track and field star in Oregon and a current female athlete at the University of South Alabama. (Courtesy of Alexa Anderson)
Anderson appeared on “America’s Newsroom” Monday and said girls and women need to take a stand.
“My message is that it’s not fair and it’s not safe, and we need to stand up as girls affected by this issue,” she told PK Press Club Channel’s Dana Perino. “It’s our job to stand up and tell those in charge that we don’t agree with this and we want change.”
Anderson and teammate Reese Eckard decided to step off the podium after finishing third at the Oregon State Championships in the high jump. The moment went viral on the Internet and helped increase attention to transgender athletes competing against women.
Oregon women’s track and field athletes Reese Eckard and Alexa Anderson are not standing on a medal podium next to a trans opponent. (Courtesy of America First Policy Institute)
TRACK STAR WHO PROTECTED AGAINST TRANS ATHLETE ALLEGES SHE DIDN’T RECEIVE HER MEDAL FOR MONTHS UNTIL SHE FILED LAWSUIT
Anderson recently detailed to PK Press Club Digital the death threats she received and the struggle to earn her Oregon School Activities Association medal.
When speaking to Perino, Anderson recalled the moment she decided to take a stand.
“It was a very stressful time,” Anderson said. “A lot of eyes were on us. But deep down, I knew that allowing biological males to participate in women’s sports wasn’t right and I had to take a stand for that, for all the girls who had been affected by it.”
She added that she wouldn’t have done anything differently.
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“Even though there has been a lot of negative talk and name-calling, I have been overwhelmed by the support and kindness from so many people that it has been worth it. I just hope we get a change,” she said.
