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Trans high school athlete, 16, whines about being booed after crushing female rivals in Washington State Championships: 'Give us respect and be nice'
Transgender high school athlete Veronica Garcia, 16, was disappointed that fellow runners didn't cheer when she was awarded the gold medal during the state track and field championships last month.
'I guess maybe I expected sportsmanship because I was cheering the rest of them on when they were called. So I guess I expected to get that reciprocated,' Garcia, formerly Antonio Brown, told the Spokesman. 'I didn't get that.'
She told the outlet that the jeers she received at the championship meet in Tacoma, Washington last were 'a bit more severe' than usual, and one voice from the crowd even yelled: 'She's not a girl!' as Garcia went to collect her medal.
The crowd's reaction, Garcia said was no surprise, but she was 'somewhat hurt' by the chilliness from her peers, for whom she cheered during and after their races.
As she walked up to the podium to pick up her gold, the crowd was silent and her peers would not acknowledge her as they stood with hands clasped behind their backs.
Washington State runner Veronica Garcia aka Davina Brown aka Donovan Brown won at state championships last month. The athlete is pictured here at an event in April
Garcia said she's hoped to see more sportsmanship from her peer group, who did not applaud her as she accepted the gold medal at Washington state championships
Garcia is one of a number of high school athletes currently at the center of the debate over biological males competing in women's sports.
The high school junior began transitioning last year, and says she has since had a 'taste of how hard we as a species can be for absolutely no reason other than being a little different.'
She said she's been bullied by those who have lobbed 'discriminatory comments' at her, some of which invalidate her identity as a woman, according to the Spokesman.
Though she admits there are 'not easy answers,' when it comes to the question of biological men competing against women, she said she wishes those with complaints would refrain from yelling at her.
'I’m just a teenager. It’s one thing if you want to advocate for whatever, but your message becomes deflated when you start insulting. As soon as you start harassing transgender people, then I think your message starts to fall apart.
'At the very least, give us respect, because I think the best thing anyone can do is, even if you don’t understand why we’re transgender, the very least is to be nice to us. Kindness goes a long way,' she said.
At the final race of the season Garcia finished with a time of 55.75 - a full second ahead of the first biologically female runner.
Although there was cheering as the participants crossed the finish line, it was when Garcia, an eleventh-grader, ascended the podium that boos and jeering could clearly be heard.
Lauren Matthew of the West Valley School District, who came in second in the race, did not have the power to keep up with Garcia and crossed the finish line a full second behind her with a time of 56.75.
But had Garcia, who was born male, been running in the equivalent boy's race, she wouldn't have even managed 16th place - with the slowest boy finishing at 53.12 - more than 2.5 seconds clear of Garcia's time.
As the host announced Matthew's name, all the girls clapped and cheered for her respectable second place finish.
Veronica Garcia came in first place with a time of 55.75. Had she - a biological male - been racing boys, she wouldn't have even placed in the top 16
But as first place was awarded to Garcia there was virtual silence in the stadium.
Her fellow runners stood on the podium in complete silence with their hands behind their backs.
In a clear sign of disapproval, there was a stunned silence in the crowd until someone could be heard calling out Veronica's name, to which she gave a thumbs up.
It's the latest in a series of wins for Garcia who appears to be performing far better than when she competed on the boy's team.
Last month she finished 13th in a field of 152 girls at the Washington State 2A Championships following a cross country meet.
But last year, Garcia could only manage 164th out of 172 in the boy's 5000m at a regional championship held in the fall.
Public schools in Washington State specify that all students who participate in physical education and athletics are able to take part in the category that corresponds to their gender identity without the need to provide evidence of a medical transition.
When Garcia mounted the podium, there was no applause for her. Only booing could be heard and her fellow runners - all biological females who stood with their hands behind their backs
Following Garcia's win, Riley Gaines, a former NCAA swimmer who campaigns against allowing trans athletes to compete in women's sport, took to social media
Following Garcia's win, Riley Gaines, a former NCAA swimmer who campaigns against allowing trans athletes to compete in women's sport, took to social media and posted video of the race.
'Would you look at that...the thing that never happens happened again.
'Veronica Garcia (Donovan Brown) just won the Washington State Championship in the girls' 400m in total domination.'
Gaines became an activist after she tied for fifth place with transgender swimmer Lia Thomas in a 2022 swim meet. However, Thomas was handed the trophy and celebrated, though officials could not offer a compelling explanation to Gaines of what was going on or why.
The Kentucky swimmer has since joined forces with a dozen college athletes who filed a lawsuit against the NCAA on Thursday, accusing it of violating their Title IX rights by allowing Thomas to compete at the competition.