Transgender Teen Athlete Speaks Out Ahead of Supreme Court Ruling

A transgender high school athlete in West Virginia is speaking publicly as a U.S. Supreme Court case that could determine her ability to compete in girls' sports nears a ruling.

The justices are expected to decide by early summer whether state bans on transgender girls in school sports are legal, a ruling that could reshape policy nationwide.

The outcome of West Virginia v. B.P.J. could immediately bar Becky Pepper‑Jackson and other transgender student‑athletes from competing, potentially ending her high school track career.

Becky Pepper‑Jackson’s Legal Fight: What to Know

Pepper‑Jackson has publicly identified as a girl since she was 8 and, according to her family, long before that at home. She began socially transitioning in early childhood and later started puberty‑blocking medication at the onset of puberty - a medical history her attorneys say is central to her case.

Pepper‑Jackson became a plaintiff in 2021, at age 11, after West Virginia enacted a law barring transgender athletes from competing on girls' teams in middle school, high school and college. The law took effect shortly after it was signed, prompting a legal challenge that placed the then‑middle schooler at the center of a national culture‑war flashpoint.

In 2023, the Supreme Court allowed Pepper‑Jackson to continue competing while the lawsuit worked its way through the courts. Now, with the final ruling approaching, the case is nearing its conclusion.

"I'm not here to get an advantage," she told the Associated Press. "I've been like pushed down and have people that just look at me nasty my whole life. And I've learned that that's just something I'm going to have to deal with."

In January, the court's conservative majority - which has repeatedly ruled against transgender Americans in the past year - signaled it is likely to uphold state bans, determining that they do not violate the Constitution or Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sex discrimination in education.

The justices also heard arguments in a separate Idaho case brought by Lindsay Hecox, who challenged that state's first‑in‑the‑nation ban so she could try out for women's track and cross‑country teams at Boise State University. She did not make either team.

Pepper‑Jackson is the only transgender athlete who has sought to compete in girls' sports in West Virginia. If the court rules that state bans are legal, her high school track career would effectively end this season.

"I can't make their decisions for them, so I just have to wait and see what they'll say," she said. "I try not to look at it if this could be my last season.”

West Virginia Officials Defend Transgender Ban

West Virginia Attorney General JB McCuskey said he is confident the law will withstand the court challenge.

"West Virginia's law does not exclude anyone; it simply says biological boys will compete against boys, and biological girls will compete against girls," McCuskey said in a statement. "On the athletic field, biological sex matters - gender identity does not."

Supporters of the ban argue it ensures fairness for female athletes, while opponents say it singles out and excludes transgender students without accounting for individual medical history or athletic performance.

In 2024, five athletes from a rival school refused to compete alongside her. A week later, they received a standing ovation at a news conference in Charleston where then‑Attorney General Patrick Morrisey announced the state would challenge a federal appeals court ruling that favored Pepper‑Jackson.

At the 2025 state meet, a female sprinter stood atop the podium wearing a T‑shirt that read, "Men don't belong in women's sports."

Transgender Athlete Awaits Supreme Court Decision

Pepper‑Jackson told AP that she follows the success of other transgender girls competing in high school track across the country, including athletes in California and Washington state.

"I think it's very inspiring," she said. "There's a lot of core lessons you learn from being in sports that you don't get anywhere else, like teamwork, sportsmanship.”

Those performances have renewed calls from some parents' groups and conservative leaders, including President Donald Trump, to ban transgender girls from competing in girls' sports - even in states where such participation is currently allowed.

As the Supreme Court weighs the legal future of those bans, Pepper‑Jackson says she tries not to dwell on the outcome.

"I can't make their decisions for them, so I just have to wait and see what they'll say," she said. "I try not to look at it if this could be my last season."

She plans to pursue music in college and hopes to become a band director. As for the broader legal fight, she keeps her perspective simple.

"I don't see the gravity of this court case," she said. "I think it's just common knowledge: Transgender girls should be able to be on the girls' sports team. I think that's simple."

Reporting by the Associated Press contributed to this article.

Newsweek's reporters and editors used Martyn, our Al assistant, to help produce this story. Learn more about Martyn.

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This story was originally published April 17, 2026 at 3:04 PM.