Thai trans student runner in US state championships. High school runners competing in the Alaska championship voiced their displeasure to the media after a Thai transgender student was allowed to compete in the competition for girls.
A senior of Haines High School, Nattaphon “Ice” Wangyot, 18, came in 5th in the the girls 100-meter dash and 3rd in the girls 200-meter dash n Friday at the statewide Alaska high school state track-and-field meet.
According to local news, she was the first trans student to compete for a high school state championship as their identified gender as well as the first Alaskan biologically male athlete to compete in girls state championships.
Thai trans student runner in US state championships
Though it’s a step forward for transgender people, not everyone was pleased that Nattaphon was able to compete as a female as her competitors said they are disadvantaged competing against Nattaphon, who was born male.
Runner Saskia Harrison, who finished behind Nattaphon and got cut from the event, told KTVA Alaska TV: “I’m glad that this person is comfortable with who they are and they’re able to be happy in who they are, but I don’t think it’s competitively completely 100-percent fair.”
Peyton Young won her running competition but felt similarly, saying, “I don’t know what’s politically correct to say, but in my opinion your gender is what you’re born with. It’s the DNA. Genetically, a guy has more muscle mass than a girl, and if he’s racing against a girl, he may have an advantage.”
Another women, Stephanie Williams, from the conservative group Alaska Family Action, made the point that, “We have a responsibility to protect these girls that are working toward college scholarships.”
And then there’s this nutter, who calls himself the “international anchor of common sense”
He manages to bash transgender people, Thai people and all women in the first minute and a half of his rant.
There is no umbrella policy in Alaska that states whether a transgender person can compete in sports as the gender they identify with. Alaska has a policy to let each school decide for themselves, as Nattaphon’s school did.
In the US, 30 of 50 states have policies that allow transgender athletes to compete as the gender they identify with.
Nattaphon moved to Alaska from Thailand in 2014. She hasn’t commented extensively on this story but told the Alaska Dispatch News, “The people who are going to think, ‘It’s not fair to play with the boys’ — well, you don’t know that. It’s not easy. It’s not like I wake up and ‘OK, I’m a girl right now.’”