A transgender 18-year-old wrestler has won the Texas girls’ Class 6A 110-pound division for the second year.
Mack Beggs, a student at Euless Trinity High School just outside of Dallas, is currently in the process of transitioning from a female to a male.
Beggs defeated Chelsea Sanchez on Saturday, the same female competitor he beat last year at the wrestling championship.
This has reignited a controversial debate that sparked last year after his first win.
Not only are there separate leagues for males and females in place for reason, but Beggs was taking a low-dose of testosterone.
“It was his steroid-therapy treatments while wrestling girls that stirred a fierce debate about competitive fairness and transgender rights last season. It has been a lot quieter since last year, when his march to a state championship was dogged by a last-minute lawsuit that tried to stop him,” writes ESPN. “Beggs had asked to wrestle in the boys’ division, but the rules for Texas public high schools require athletes to compete under the gender on their birth certificate.”
Beggs entered this year’s tournament with a 32-0 record and beat each female competitor he faced in the championship.
“I felt a lot more humble. This year I wanted to prove a point that anyone can do anything. Even though I was put in this position, even though I didn’t want to be put in this position, even though I wanted to wrestle the guys, I still had to wrestle the girls,” said Beggs to The Dallas Morning News’ Sports Day.
One of his competitors forfeited to avoid injury, even after her coach and teammates insisted she wrestle Beggs.
According to the rule of Texas public high schools, athletes must compete under the gender on their birth certificate.
Beggs believes that this needs to be changed.
“But what can I tell people? I can tell the state Legislature to change the policy, but I can’t tell them to change it right now. All I can hope for is that they come to their [senses] and realize this is stupid and we should change the policies to conform to other people in my position,” said Beggs.
According to his mother, Beggs has so much respect for the female competitors.
“He has so much respect for all the girls he wrestles,” said Angela McNew, Beggs’ mother. “People think Mack has been beating up on girls … The girls he wrestles with, they are tough. It has more to do with skill and discipline than strength.”
But, he still made the decision to compete and put them in harm’s way since he is taking testosterone hormone therapy that enhances his ability to compete.
Author’s note: Even if you are a supporter of the trans movement, how is this even fair? Why not just have all students compete all in the same league? His family made the decision to let their daughter transition to a male and they shouldn’t have had him compete. Now, his win isn’t seen as legitimate, so was it even worth it? He only competed to prove a point and definitely had an unfair advantage.