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Transgender boy wins Texas girls wrestling championship

Mack Beggs, a 17-year-old wrestler who identifies as male, has won a Texas state title in girls wrestling, overcoming jeers from the crowd en route to a controversial championship.

The victory was contentious in part because Beggs is taking testosterone as he transitions from female to male, which some claimed gave him an unfair advantage.

“She’s standing there holding her head high like she’s the winner. She’s not winning. She’s cheating,” said Patti Overstreet, the mother of another wrestler, according to the Washington Post. “It’s not equal. It’s never going to be equal.”

Beggs would have rather competed against boys, but a state policy meant his division was determined by the gender on his birth certificate.

That policy was enacted last year by the University Interscholastic League (UIL), which oversees Texas high school sports.

"Nothing that has happened at this year's wrestling championships has the UIL reconsidering its rules, because quite frankly, we don't believe that any issues being reported on are really a product of UIL rules," Jamey Harrison, the UIL deputy director, told ESPN.

The father of another wrestler, who is also an attorney, unsuccessfully sought an injunction to prevent Beggs from competing while he is receiving testosterone treatments. Several parents complained that Beggs was too strong to compete against girls, while others expressed sympathy for him.

Beggs was unstoppable throughout the season, finishing with a 56-0 record and giving a dominant performance in the final.

"I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for my teammates. That's honestly what the spotlight should be on, is my teammates," he said after receiving his medal. "The hard work that I put in the practice room with them beside me, we trained every single day, every single day, and that's what the spotlight should be been on, not me."