The female athletes claim it is a violation of their Title IX rights to have to compete against males. State officials wanted the case dismissed, but a federal court last week in Connecticut allowed the case to move forward.
AFN spoke with attorney Rachel Rouleau of Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), the law firm representing the female athletes.
"Selina, Chelsea, Alanna, and Ashley – like all female athletes – deserve access to fair competition," says Rouleau. "The Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference's policy degraded each of their accomplishments and scarred their athletic records, irreparably harming each female athlete's interest in accurate recognition of her athletic achievements."
The federal district court allowed the case to proceed after the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated the case last December and sent it back to the district court.
"Following the Second Circuit's decision to allow these brave women to make their case under Title IX and set the record straight, the district court has rightly rejected the state's request to dismiss the case and instead recognized that the girls' 'schools are potentially liable for subjecting the plaintiffs to discrimination under their athletic programs in violation of Title IX,'" the attorney explains.
"This is imperative not only for the women who have been deprived of medals, potential scholarships, and other athletic opportunities but for all female athletes across the country."
The case is filed as Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools.
