Alliance Defending Freedom files civil rights complaint against WIAA, Washington state
Apr 4, 2025, 6:36 AM
Former U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) speaks at an "Our Bodies, Our Sports" rally to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX at Freedom Plaza on June 23, 2022 in Washington, DC. The rally, organized by multiple athletic women's groups was held to call on U.S. President Joe Biden to put restrictions on transgender females and "advocate to keep women's sports female."(Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
(Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The Alliance Defending Freedom filed a civil rights complaint Wednesday with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, alleging that Washington state’s high school athletic policy unlawfully discriminates against female athletes and violates Title IX.
The complaint was submitted on behalf of two high school girls’ track athletes—Soleil Hoefer, a senior at Prosser High School, and Kora Lengerich, a freshman at Gonzaga Preparatory School. It claimed that the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) policy permitting male athletes to compete in girls’ sports undermines fair competition and deprives female athletes of equal opportunities.
“It is fundamentally unfair that, despite all of their hard work and discipline, Soliel and Kora may never get to know the thrill of victory because Washington forces them to race against males with inherent biological advantages,” ADF Legal Counsel Suzanne Beecher said in a press release.
What’s in the Title IX complaint?
According to the complaint, Lengerich lost a podium spot during a 400-meter race in March to a biologically male athlete who previously competed on the boys’ team, but now runs for the East Valley High School girls’ track team. Hoefer is expected to compete against the same athlete later this season.
The WIAA, which governs high school athletics in Washington, allows athletes to compete “consistent with their gender identity or the gender most consistently expressed.” The ADF argued this policy violates Title IX’s guarantee of equal opportunity on the basis of sex, not gender identity.
“The justification for having sex-based categories in school athletics is to afford women and girls, who have distinct biological and physiological features that put them at a disadvantage in nearly every sport, the opportunity to enjoy meaningful competition and have a fair chance at athletic victory,” the complaint stated.
Questioning interpretation of nondiscrimination law
The ADF also argued that Washington’s interpretation of state nondiscrimination law forces schools to align with gender identity rather than biological sex.
State guidelines prohibit discrimination based on “gender expression [and] gender identity,” and school districts are required to allow students to participate in sports according to their identified gender. In a February statement, State Superintendent Chris Reykdal called a recent executive order from President Trump—titled Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports—discriminatory, asserting it “directly contradicts state law.”
In contrast, the ADF maintained that the executive order reinforces the original intent of Title IX.
Calls for investigation
The ADF is urging the Department of Education to investigate and require Washington schools to align participation in athletics with biological sex, not gender identity. The group also requested that the department move swiftly, citing ongoing competitions and the potential for repeated harm to female athletes statewide.
“Prompt investigation and remedial action are critical. As the track and field season and competitions are ongoing, Complainants and their teammates as well as other girls in Washington state continue to be deprived of the protections guaranteed by Title IX,” the complaint concluded.
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