Umansky: Trans athlete competing in girls' track 'not fair, period'

Female athletes are displaced from podium positions and competitive opportunities due to participation policies they view as unfair.
It's not fair, period, end of story.
Umansky on transgender athletes competing in girls' sports, framing the issue as one of biological reality rather than ideology.

In Clovis, California, a high school track meet has become a mirror for one of the era's most contested questions: how a society honors both inclusion and fairness when the two appear to pull in opposite directions. AB Hernandez, a trans-identifying athlete from Jurupa Valley, stands poised to compete for three girls' state titles this weekend, drawing voices from parents, public figures, and policymakers into a debate that resists easy resolution. Real estate developer and father Mauricio Umansky has added his voice plainly, arguing that biological difference is not a matter of opinion but of physical reality — and that acknowledging it is not the same as denying anyone's dignity. The controversy asks whether a policy can be both inclusive and just, or whether those values, in this arena, are genuinely in conflict.

  • AB Hernandez, who won two state championships last year in jumping events, has qualified for all three girls' jumping finals this weekend — making the possibility of a historic sweep a lightning rod for national debate.
  • Female athletes and their families feel the stakes viscerally: podium spots, scholarship visibility, and the sense that the rules of their sport no longer protect them.
  • California's athletic federation has responded with a workaround — allowing additional girls to share medals when a trans athlete places — a compromise that critics say names the problem without solving it.
  • Last year's state meet erupted into competing protests, a banner flyover, ejections, and an arrest; this weekend's competition is expected to draw the same charged atmosphere.
  • Voices like Umansky's and track parent Jennifer Oliver's insist the debate is not about hostility toward trans individuals, but about whether biological difference can be set aside in a domain where it determines outcomes.

Mauricio Umansky, a real estate developer and father of four daughters, stepped into the debate over transgender athletes in girls' sports this week with an unambiguous position. Speaking on OutKick, he addressed the case of AB Hernandez, a trans-identifying athlete from Jurupa Valley High School preparing to compete for three girls' state track titles at the California Interscholastic Federation finals in Clovis. Hernandez won two state championships last year in the high jump and triple jump and has since qualified for all three jumping events at this year's state meet.

Umansky did not frame his concern as a cultural or political argument. "It's not fair, period, end of story," he said, drawing a clear line between respecting a person's gender identity and allowing that identity to override biological differences in athletic competition. His position — that fairness and inclusion are separate questions — echoed what many parents in the stands have been saying for months.

Among them is Jennifer Oliver, a California track parent whose daughter competes in the same events. "There's no hate," Oliver said. "This has nothing to do with any of that. But we also need to do the right thing." Her words captured a tension many families are navigating: how to hold compassion and competitive fairness at the same time without letting one erase the other.

California's athletic federation has attempted a middle path through a pilot policy allowing additional female athletes to advance or share medals in events where a trans athlete qualifies. Critics argue the policy acknowledges the imbalance without resolving it — girls still compete against Hernandez, they simply receive a consolation accommodation afterward.

Last year's state meet was marked by protests, a flyover banner, ejections, and an arrest. This weekend is expected to bring similar scrutiny. The competition has become a focal point for a national argument that shows no sign of settling: whether athletic policy can be both genuinely inclusive and genuinely fair — and what it costs girls when the answer is treated as obvious in either direction.

Mauricio Umansky, a real estate developer and television personality, entered the ongoing debate over transgender athletes in girls' sports this week with a straightforward position: the competition is fundamentally unfair. Speaking with OutKick's Tomi Lahren, Umansky addressed the case of AB Hernandez, a trans-identifying athlete from Jurupa Valley High School in California who is preparing to compete for three girls' state track titles this weekend at the California Interscholastic Federation state finals in Clovis.

Hernandez has become one of the most visible figures in the American conversation about biological males competing in girls' athletics. The athlete won two state championships last year in the high jump and triple jump, finishing second in the long jump. This weekend, Hernandez qualified for the state meet in all three jumping events after sweeping them at the CIF Southern Section Masters Meet the previous weekend. The potential for three additional state titles has made the competition a focal point for the larger national argument.

Umansky, who has four daughters, did not hedge his view. "It's not fair, period, end of story," he told Lahren. "It's a common sense thing." He framed the issue as one that should not require scientific committees or bureaucratic compromise. His concern was specific: he was not arguing against adults living according to their gender identity, but rather against using gender identity to override biological differences in athletic competition. "If a man wants to become a woman, great. If a woman wants to be a man, great, but they cannot be competing against each other," Umansky said. "Biologically, we are different human beings."

California's athletic federation has attempted to navigate the controversy through a pilot policy that allows additional female athletes to advance or receive medals in events where a transgender athlete qualifies or places. This workaround acknowledges the fairness problem while maintaining inclusive participation—female athletes can share podium spots with Hernandez after competing against the athlete. The policy itself suggests state officials recognize an inherent competitive imbalance, yet the solution keeps girls competing against a male athlete rather than addressing the underlying concern.

Jennifer Oliver, a California track parent whose daughter competes in the same events, spoke to the tension with both compassion and directness. "There's no hate," Oliver said. "None of that. My daughter is super inclusive. We get along with everybody. This has nothing to do with any of that. But we also need to do the right thing." Her framing separated the question of fairness from questions of acceptance or respect, suggesting these are distinct issues that need not collapse into one another.

Hernandez's participation has already generated significant disruption. Last year's state meet included competing protests, a flyover banner, ejections from the venue, and an arrest. This weekend's competition is expected to draw similar attention and controversy. The case has become a flashpoint for broader questions about how athletic associations balance inclusion with competitive fairness, and whether current policies adequately protect the opportunities available to female athletes.

Umansky's intervention matters partly because he is not a politician seeking advantage from the debate. He is a father observing what he sees as an obvious physical reality and expressing frustration that it has become contentious to name it. His comments reflect what polling suggests is a majority American position: that girls' sports cannot function if males are permitted to compete whenever they claim a female identity. Whether that position will influence California's athletic policies remains unclear, but the state is preparing for another weekend of protests and scrutiny as Hernandez competes for those three titles.

It's not fair, period, end of story. It's a common sense thing.
— Mauricio Umansky
There's no hate. My daughter is super inclusive. But we also need to do the right thing.
— Jennifer Oliver, California track parent
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Inventor

Why does this particular case matter so much? There are other trans athletes competing in high school sports across the country.

Model

Hernandez has won state championships and is positioned to win more. That visibility makes the question concrete instead of abstract. People can point to actual medals, actual podium positions, actual displaced competitors.

Inventor

The CIF's medal-sharing policy—is that actually a solution, or does it just hide the problem?

Model

It acknowledges the problem exists while refusing to solve it. If officials believed the competition was fair, they wouldn't need to give extra medals to other athletes. But instead of changing the rule, they created a consolation mechanism.

Inventor

Umansky says this is common sense. Is it?

Model

Common sense about biology, maybe. But the policy question is harder. You have to choose between inclusion and fairness, and California chose to try both at once, which satisfies neither.

Inventor

What about the female athletes themselves? What do they want?

Model

The ones speaking up want to compete fairly. They're not saying Hernandez shouldn't exist or shouldn't be accepted. They're saying the sport itself has rules, and those rules should mean something.

Inventor

Does Umansky's position leave room for any solution?

Model

Not really. He's saying males and females cannot compete together in sports, period. That's a categorical answer, not a negotiated one.

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