TV comments erupt after AB Hernandez shares girls podium spot following bizarre California high school track championship rule

Transgender high school athlete AB Hernandez once again became the center of a major debate in California girls track and field after winning three events at the CIF Southern Section finals on Saturday.

The Jurupa Valley High School athlete beat biological female competitors by big margins in the long jump, high jump, and triple jump during the division championships in Moorpark, California. But the biggest reaction came during the medal ceremony, where CIF officials used a controversial rule that allowed female athletes who finished behind Hernandez to also be recognized as co-champions on the podium.The unusual podium scenes quickly sparked strong reactions online and inside the stadium.

In some events, Hernandez shared the top podium step with female athletes. In others, the runner-up stood alone or Hernandez stood alone without the other athlete beside her. The rule was first introduced by CIF last year after growing backlash over transgender athletes competing in girls sports. According to reports from Fox News, the same policy is expected to stay in place through the rest of the postseason.

AB Hernandez beats Gianna Gonzalez, Gwnneth Mureika and Malia Strange as CIF podium rule sparks debate

AB Hernandez opened the day by winning the girls long jump by more than one foot over Moorpark High School athlete Gianna Gonzalez.

During the medal ceremony, Gonzalez stood alone on the top podium step while Hernandez was not beside her despite recording the winning mark.The next event brought even more attention. Hernandez cleared the winning height in the high jump, finishing two inches ahead of Oak Park athlete Gwnneth Mureika. This time, both athletes stood together on the top step as co-champions during the ceremony.In the triple jump, Hernandez won again by nearly two feet over Shadow Hills athlete Malia Strange.

But unlike the high jump ceremony, Strange did not appear on the podium beside Hernandez, leaving the Jurupa Valley athlete standing alone during the presentation.The results mean Hernandez now advances to next weekend’s CIF preliminaries and remains in contention to return to the California state finals for a second straight season.The controversy around transgender athletes in girls sports has continued to grow across California high school competitions.

Earlier this week, Crean Lutheran High School athlete Reese Hogan spoke openly about competing against Hernandez again. Hogan had previously gone viral last year after stepping onto the top podium spot following a second-place finish behind Hernandez.Speaking to Fox News Digital before the event, Reese Hogan said, “If the opportunity presents itself, we’ll see, yeah.”Hogan later finished third in the high jump, sixth in the triple jump, and did not qualify for the long jump final on Saturday.During her earlier interview, Hogan also shared her frustration about competing against a transgender athlete in girls events.“This is my third year competing against a transgender athlete, and last year I was stripped away of a CIF Title. I basically worked my whole career to get to that point,” Hogan said.“It’s just really disappointing to go into a competition knowing you already lost. I’m here to stand up for girls in girls sports and to call out CIF and the state of California for their poor leadership and lack of support for female athletes.”