Over the weekend, a high school track meet in Pennsylvania reignited the national firestorm over transgender athletes in women’s sports, as Luce Allen, a biological male competing on the girls’ team, narrowly beat a freshman girl by just 0.15 seconds in the 200-meter sprint. Allen, a senior at Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School, also helped win the girls’ 4×400-meter relay—marking the sixth victory this season competing against girls.
Allen’s performance, while enough to win in the girls’ division, would have been among the slowest times in the boys’ field for the same event. According to Fox News, the winning boys’ times were 21.72 and 21.96 seconds, far surpassing Allen’s 25.20-second finish.
Allen’s participation underscores the central issue that continues to divide communities, sports leagues, and now entire states: Should biological males be allowed to compete in girls’ sports? For critics, this latest result provides a clear and painful answer.
A 0.15-second victory may seem small on paper, but for the freshman girl runner who lost the race—and for the broader field of young female athletes—it can mean the difference between medals, championships, scholarships, and opportunity. It’s a difference built on biological advantage, not training or merit.
Allen has competed in the girls’ division since sophomore year. No record exists of Allen competing under that name on either the boys’ or girls’ teams as a freshman, raising questions about when the transition was made and how eligibility standards are being enforced.
Supporters of Allen’s participation, including his mother and coach, offered familiar talking points at a recent Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) board meeting.
“My child is a female in her heart and soul,” said Sarah Hanson, Allen’s mother. “To force her to compete against boys would be cruel.”
Coach Christopher Jackson added that Allen’s inclusion has helped “foster a spirit of unity, sportsmanship, and inclusivity.”
But these appeals do not address the core issue: athletic competition is rooted in biological distinctions, not personal identity. The science on physical advantages held by males—even after hormone therapy—is clear: differences in muscle mass, bone density, lung capacity, and testosterone retention persist and impact performance.
This case mirrors the national uproar surrounding Lia Thomas, the University of Pennsylvania swimmer and biological male who won an NCAA Division I national championship in women’s swimming in 2022. That controversy ignited a wave of state-level protections for female athletes.
President Donald Trump, citing both scientific evidence and public sentiment, signed an executive order in February titled “Keeping Men out of Women’s Sports.” The order:
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Prohibits biological males from competing in women’s divisions in federally funded schools and universities.
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Mandates federal departments to review education grants and revoke funding from programs that violate this policy.
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Frames the issue as one of safety, fairness, dignity, and truth for female athletes.
Despite this, Democrat-led states like Pennsylvania, California, and Maine have continued to allow transgender athletes in girls’ sports, defying the administration’s directive and setting up what may become a constitutional clash between federal enforcement and state defiance.
