Biological male competes and wins first place in cross country tournament (Image via libsoftiktok/Twitter)

Who is Aspen Hoffman? Biological male from Seattle Academy takes first place on girl's team after ranking 72nd on boys

Modified Nov 18, 2022 07:37 GMT

The girls’ cross-country team from Seattle Academy High School qualified for the state championship thanks to Aspen Hoffman, a trans student. The Washington educational institution is now facing immense flack on social media with netizens claiming that it is unfair for a trans person to compete in a girls’ team.

Since Hoffman began competing as a girl, she broke Seattle Academy High School’s record in the 500-meter category specifically for girls and also ranked first in the league. Earlier this year, Hoffman ranked in 2nd place at the District level and qualified for Seattle Academy High School’s State Championship as well.

Seattle Academy High School competes within the Emerald Sound Conference, which comprises of 14 schools. Popular social media page Libs of TikTok spoke with one of the school coaches who believed that Hoffman’s participation in the conference was unfair. The coach said:

“Allowing to compete against biological girls deprive other girls’ teams of the chance to compete at State. If [Aspen Hoffman] competed in the boys’ division, [Hoffman] would place 56th on the boys’ team.”

@jackassbrays

Biological male who was 72nd place on mens’ track team wins 1st place on girls’ track team in a Seattle Academy High School competition.

While competing in the school’s boys’ team, Hoffman finished 72nd in the League finals. Hoffman would have ranked in the 48th position if Aspen had participated in the 500-meter category as a boy.

Netizens express outrage over Aspen Hoffman’s cross-country wins

Internet users expressed doubt over Aspen Hoffman’s participation in the girls’ tournaments. Many claimed that it was unfair to the other girls. Some suggested that the parents and students competing against Hoffman should refuse to take part until Hoffman is removed from the competition.

A few tweets read:

Koz

@HHI_Golf_Guy

@libsoftiktok The easy way to fix this is at every event, when the gun sounds the girls just take a seat at the starting line. Every. Single. Race.

After 2 or 3 events of this mockery it will force the hands of the conference and the state. It will be big news throughout the country.

Silvina🌷 🇺🇸

@SilvinaFlorida

@libsoftiktok My advice to the young girls…be courageous and walk away from competitions like this. You are being taken advantage of by the woke system that permits this.

EM1988

@mendozae1588

@libsoftiktok I’m pulling my daughter of ANY competition that involves a male; people should follow suit and leave them standing there.

@AJsmooth17

@libsoftiktok I’m gonna slap on a wig, join the WNBA, and average 50 ppg

thomaspeterman

@thomaspeterma19

@libsoftiktok When I was a track athlete in the 1970s, with an Olympic dream, I did not have the times to ever be competitive at that level but would have won the gold at the Montreal Olympics in the Women's 200m and 400m. If only I had that option back then...

CrazyKatDawg

@CrazyKatDawg

@libsoftiktok Seems it would actually send a message if everyone just refused to compete.

Anita Letendre

@blond_goth

@libsoftiktok I don't understand why the rest of the team and parents don't boycott these events. Attending them gives the illusion of support. That is the only way things will change. It is like hating a band but still buying their concert tickets.

Marty Wright 🌾

@Marty___Moose

@libsoftiktok I see 9 young ladies who should have refused to participate in the medal ceremony. Or better yet, refuse to compete against him.

LeafFan24

@leaf24fan

@libsoftiktok Feel for those girls. If they don’t run, they get publicly shamed and named and cancelled before their lives even begin.

Audra Facinelli 🇺🇸

@audraf637

@libsoftiktok The girls standing there, perfectly trained, afraid to speak what is true, is the mark of actual so-called “privilege” in this country.

Parents of league participants expressed concern over Aspen Hoffman’s participation

It wasn't just several netizens who believe that Aspen Hoffman should not take part in the girls’ competition. Several parents of young female athletes who took part in the cross-country conference echoed the same sentiments. One father said that Aspen Hoffman is:

“larger than any of the girls, and shamelessly takes 1st place on the podium. Now my daughter is competing against a male for scholarships. And we can’t even say anything. You can’t even approach it in a nice way without being labeled a hateful bigot. You will get threats against you”

Biological males have the advantage of having greater muscle mass and lung capacity alongside higher bone density. One parent noted that Hoffman does not seem to be dealing with the body maturing, leading to Hoffman having an advantage over other female athletes. The parent said:

“our daughters are also going through puberty and developing b****ts and hips and having a period every month. [Hoffman] doesn't have any of that and it is also an advantage — apart from his body being different.”

Another parent expressed that unless there is any kind of pressure put on the state high school board, no changes in the rules will be implemented.

In 2007, the Washington Interscholastic Athletic Association announced that trans athletes can take part in sports in their reassigned gender only when they have undergone a minimum of two years of hormone treatment and surgery. The policy was updated in 2018 which stated that male to female students must have one calendar year of documented testosterone suppression treatments to take part in girls' competitions.

The aforementioned regulations went on to be scrapped in 2021.

Edited by
Karishma Rao