Three Oregon high school track and field athletes, including Madelyn Eischen from Forest Grove High School and two unnamed minors from Newberg High School, filed a federal lawsuit on July 7, 2025, in U.S. District Court in Portland. The lawsuit challenges Oregon’s policy allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls’ sports, arguing it violates Title IX by discriminating against female athletes due to physiological advantages of transgender competitors. The plaintiffs claim they were displaced in rankings or forced to withdraw from competitions, citing instances like a transgender athlete, Aayden Gallagher from McDaniel High School, winning races at state championships. The suit names Gov. Tina Kotek, the Oregon Department of Education, the Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA), and the Forest Grove, Newberg, and Portland school districts as defendants, seeking an injunction to halt the policy and unspecified damages.
The lawsuit follows a publicized protest at the 2025 Oregon High School State Track and Field Championships, where athletes Alexa Anderson and Reese Eckard refused to stand on the podium with a transgender competitor, sparking national debate. The plaintiffs were supported by the America First Policy Institute, a think tank aligned with former President Trump’s policies. Critics, like Basic Rights Oregon, argue for inclusive solutions, such as California’s policy of awarding extra medals to ensure fairness without exclusion. Oregon’s policy, backed by state antidiscrimination laws, allows students to compete based on their gender identity, a stance reinforced despite Trump’s February 2025 executive order threatening federal funding cuts for non-compliant schools.