A biological male competing among girls in New Hampshire’s Division 2 indoor track state championship this weekend appears likely to take a title.

Current state track and field rankings show the sophomore at Kearsarge Regional High School, Maelle Jacques, as no. 1 in the high jump category. The championship that the athlete is favored to win is set for February 11 at Plymouth State University. 

A former collegiate swimmer and advocate for women’s sports remaining exclusive to biological women, Riley Gaines, criticized the athlete’s parents on X. 

“How could the parents of this boy allow their son to cheat deserving women out of opportunities? And why don’t the parents of the girls stand up and say ‘no’ for their daughters?” Ms. Gaines wrote. “This country is full of failing, gutless mothers and fathers.”

In four regular meets this season, Maelle Jacques has earned first place every time, as the New Boston Post reported, and the student is the only athlete in the girls’ division to crack the five-foot mark. 

Maelle Jacques garnered press attention during the spring 2023 outdoor track season for finishing second in the 1,600-meter run, with Breitbart reporting that the performance was “knocking a girl out” of a top spot.

Kearsarge Regional High School defended students of any gender competing among girls, telling the New Boston Post last spring that it “supports all students and student-athletes regardless of their gender identity” and said student-athletes have “the right to compete in the activity of their choice.” 

The school added that it was “thankful” that students had been welcomed by competing teams “in the spirit of athletic competition.” 

“We remain grateful to the Kearsarge community for its steadfast commitment to equity and inclusion,” school representatives wrote.