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Tranny boy booed after again winning girls state wrestling title...
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Barb May
Feb 25, 2018, 3:48:49 PM2/25/18
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CYPRESS -- Mack Beggs had been in this very spot, the pinnacle, 364 days
earlier. In the same athletic complex. Beating the same state
championship match opponent, Chelsea Sanchez of Katy Morton Ranch.
But if Euless Trinity transgender wrestler Beggs thought his Class 6A
110-pound girls title victory on Saturday would be more universally
understood, respected and embraced than last year's, he was in for
disappointment.
A piercing cascade of cheers and boos enveloped Beggs at the end of the
match, the last of his high school career. He responded by repeatedly
tapping his chest and turning in a circle so that every soul in the Berry
Center, pro and con, could see him.
End of Mack Beggs title match was chaos. Had huge lead, nearly
got pinned, then came the crescendo of cheers/boos.
pic.twitter.com/FrLixVsTAj
— Brad Townsend (@townbrad) February 24, 2018
Did winning _feel_ different this time?
"It definitely felt different," Beggs said. "I felt a lot more humble.
This year I wanted to prove a point that anyone can do anything. Even
though I was put in this position, even though I didn't want to be put in
this position, even though I wanted to wrestle the guys, I still had to
wrestle the girls.
"But what can I tell people? I can tell the state Legislature to change
the policy, but I can't tell them to change it right now. All I can hope
for is that they come to their [senses] and realize this is stupid and we
should change the policies to conform to other people in my position."
Beggs wrestled girls because, under University Interscholastic League
rules, athletes are required to compete in the gender division that
corresponds to their birth certificate.
He was born female, as Mackenzie, but he identifies as male even though
he has yet to have gender reassignment surgeries. He recently consulted
with a Plano plastic surgeon and hopes to soon have "top surgery," which
involves breast tissue removal and male chest contouring.
What did he think of the boos that greeted his title match victory, by an
11-2 score that nearly was identical to his 12-2 win over Sanchez in last
year's title match? Beggs said he's never cared about public reaction and
Saturday was no different.
"They're saying 'steroids.' They're saying, 'Oh, they're beating up on
girls,' " he said.
"It just comes down to technique and who has the most heart. I put too
much blood, sweat and tears, I put too much B.S. into this journey that I
wanted to come out on top.
"In my heart, I am a champion. No matter who you put in front of me, I am
a champion."
Fans weren't the only ones who voiced displeasure.
Cypress Ranch senior Kayla Fitts, who was 52-0 this season before falling
to Beggs 11-2 in Saturday's semifinal match, told The Dallas Morning
News, "The strength definitely was the difference. I didn't anticipate
how strong he was."
Asked whether she believed having to wrestle Beggs was fair, Fitts firmly
responded, "No."
Why not?
"I understand if you want to transition your gender," she said. "I
understand that totally. But there's a time and a place.
"You can do that after high school. Or if you want to do it, you can quit
the sport. Because I don't think it's fair at all that you're taking
testosterone. That's steroids. I know it's not a lot. But still."
Beggs has taken doctor-prescribed, low-dose testosterone injections
(currently 36 milligrams per week) since October of his freshman year.
His gender transition and hormone therapy, however, did not come to
public light until last January.
State law and UIL rules prohibit steroid use by high school athletes.
Beggs' testosterone injections are permissible, however, because of the
law's "safe harbor" provision, which allows steroids that are "dispensed,
prescribed, delivered and administered by a medical practitioner for a
valid medical purpose."
With Saturday's win, Beggs thus ended his senior season, and his time
wrestling competitively against girls, with a 36-0 record. He was 56-0 as
a junior and 40-9 as a sophomore, when he lost in the state tournament
quarterfinals.
Beggs has an academic scholarship offer from a small college he declines
to name, a school he says has promised him a chance to wrestle on the
men's team. An emotional Beggs thanked Euless Trinity, wrestling coach
Travis Clark and his teammates.
"Without them, I wouldn't be the wrestler and athlete that I am today,"
he said.
Despite the safe-harbor provision and birth certificate rule, and Beggs'
often-stated preference to wrestle boys, public outcry began with a low
grumble 13 months ago and grew into an uproar.
A Coppell wrestling parent filed a lawsuit that attempted to block Beggs
from wrestling girls. And last May a law proposed in the Texas House
would have given the UIL latitude to suspend athletes if "the safety of
competing students or the fairness of a particular competition has been
or will be substantially affected by the student's steroid use."
The lawsuit was dismissed by a Travis County judge. The proposed law,
Senate Bill 2095, breezed through the Senate but died in the House's
Public Education Committee because, according to the committee's
chairman, it was received too late in the legislative session.
With legal avenues having at least temporarily played out, the turmoil
surrounding Beggs lessened considerably during this wrestling season. The
unspoken yet palpable general feeling entering Beggs' last state meet
was: Let's get this weekend over with, then evaluate and readdress.
Beggs' Saturday morning semifinal victory over Fitts, however, drew some
boos, mostly drowned by cheers as Fitts exited the mat and sobbed into
her coach's chest.
Beggs' Saturday evening title match victory, too, brought cheers, but the
booing was as intense as after last year's title match. Turns out,
seemingly little had changed in the realm of public opinion.
https://sportsday.dallasnews.com/high-school/high-
schools/2018/02/24/transgender-wrestler-mack-beggs-finishes-high-school-
career-another-uil-state-title-amid-boos-criticism-questions
--
Barb
earlier. In the same athletic complex. Beating the same state
championship match opponent, Chelsea Sanchez of Katy Morton Ranch.
But if Euless Trinity transgender wrestler Beggs thought his Class 6A
110-pound girls title victory on Saturday would be more universally
understood, respected and embraced than last year's, he was in for
disappointment.
A piercing cascade of cheers and boos enveloped Beggs at the end of the
match, the last of his high school career. He responded by repeatedly
tapping his chest and turning in a circle so that every soul in the Berry
Center, pro and con, could see him.
End of Mack Beggs title match was chaos. Had huge lead, nearly
got pinned, then came the crescendo of cheers/boos.
pic.twitter.com/FrLixVsTAj
— Brad Townsend (@townbrad) February 24, 2018
Did winning _feel_ different this time?
"It definitely felt different," Beggs said. "I felt a lot more humble.
This year I wanted to prove a point that anyone can do anything. Even
though I was put in this position, even though I didn't want to be put in
this position, even though I wanted to wrestle the guys, I still had to
wrestle the girls.
"But what can I tell people? I can tell the state Legislature to change
the policy, but I can't tell them to change it right now. All I can hope
for is that they come to their [senses] and realize this is stupid and we
should change the policies to conform to other people in my position."
Beggs wrestled girls because, under University Interscholastic League
rules, athletes are required to compete in the gender division that
corresponds to their birth certificate.
He was born female, as Mackenzie, but he identifies as male even though
he has yet to have gender reassignment surgeries. He recently consulted
with a Plano plastic surgeon and hopes to soon have "top surgery," which
involves breast tissue removal and male chest contouring.
What did he think of the boos that greeted his title match victory, by an
11-2 score that nearly was identical to his 12-2 win over Sanchez in last
year's title match? Beggs said he's never cared about public reaction and
Saturday was no different.
"They're saying 'steroids.' They're saying, 'Oh, they're beating up on
girls,' " he said.
"It just comes down to technique and who has the most heart. I put too
much blood, sweat and tears, I put too much B.S. into this journey that I
wanted to come out on top.
"In my heart, I am a champion. No matter who you put in front of me, I am
a champion."
Fans weren't the only ones who voiced displeasure.
Cypress Ranch senior Kayla Fitts, who was 52-0 this season before falling
to Beggs 11-2 in Saturday's semifinal match, told The Dallas Morning
News, "The strength definitely was the difference. I didn't anticipate
how strong he was."
Asked whether she believed having to wrestle Beggs was fair, Fitts firmly
responded, "No."
Why not?
"I understand if you want to transition your gender," she said. "I
understand that totally. But there's a time and a place.
"You can do that after high school. Or if you want to do it, you can quit
the sport. Because I don't think it's fair at all that you're taking
testosterone. That's steroids. I know it's not a lot. But still."
Beggs has taken doctor-prescribed, low-dose testosterone injections
(currently 36 milligrams per week) since October of his freshman year.
His gender transition and hormone therapy, however, did not come to
public light until last January.
State law and UIL rules prohibit steroid use by high school athletes.
Beggs' testosterone injections are permissible, however, because of the
law's "safe harbor" provision, which allows steroids that are "dispensed,
prescribed, delivered and administered by a medical practitioner for a
valid medical purpose."
With Saturday's win, Beggs thus ended his senior season, and his time
wrestling competitively against girls, with a 36-0 record. He was 56-0 as
a junior and 40-9 as a sophomore, when he lost in the state tournament
quarterfinals.
Beggs has an academic scholarship offer from a small college he declines
to name, a school he says has promised him a chance to wrestle on the
men's team. An emotional Beggs thanked Euless Trinity, wrestling coach
Travis Clark and his teammates.
"Without them, I wouldn't be the wrestler and athlete that I am today,"
he said.
Despite the safe-harbor provision and birth certificate rule, and Beggs'
often-stated preference to wrestle boys, public outcry began with a low
grumble 13 months ago and grew into an uproar.
A Coppell wrestling parent filed a lawsuit that attempted to block Beggs
from wrestling girls. And last May a law proposed in the Texas House
would have given the UIL latitude to suspend athletes if "the safety of
competing students or the fairness of a particular competition has been
or will be substantially affected by the student's steroid use."
The lawsuit was dismissed by a Travis County judge. The proposed law,
Senate Bill 2095, breezed through the Senate but died in the House's
Public Education Committee because, according to the committee's
chairman, it was received too late in the legislative session.
With legal avenues having at least temporarily played out, the turmoil
surrounding Beggs lessened considerably during this wrestling season. The
unspoken yet palpable general feeling entering Beggs' last state meet
was: Let's get this weekend over with, then evaluate and readdress.
Beggs' Saturday morning semifinal victory over Fitts, however, drew some
boos, mostly drowned by cheers as Fitts exited the mat and sobbed into
her coach's chest.
Beggs' Saturday evening title match victory, too, brought cheers, but the
booing was as intense as after last year's title match. Turns out,
seemingly little had changed in the realm of public opinion.
https://sportsday.dallasnews.com/high-school/high-
schools/2018/02/24/transgender-wrestler-mack-beggs-finishes-high-school-
career-another-uil-state-title-amid-boos-criticism-questions
--
Barb
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