Girls’ sports are for girls: Camas runners walk off, Rufo praises them

The Camas walkout has brought girls’ sports into a congressional debate as Washington voters prepare to decide Initiative 638 on Nov. 3.

Girls' sports are for girls, and on Oct. 14 Christopher Rufo publicly saluted the Camas runners who acted on that truth. "Nice to see this act of courage happening here in Washington State. Congrats to the team in Camas," Rufo wrote on X¹. His post linked to a video shared by independent journalist Brandi Kruse².

"Nearly half of the girls cross-country team in Camas, Washington, just forfeited their race. They refused to compete against a boy," Kruse wrote. She called it bravery and told her readers: "Vote YES on I-638 to stand with them²." She also named the officeholders she holds responsible: "Governor Bob Ferguson and @washdems, this is on you. … We will never forget how you abandoned women and girls at the altar of your radical ideologies³." The Secretary of State's office says ballots for the Nov. 3 general election will be mailed to voters by Oct. 16, two days after Rufo's post⁴.

“Nice to see this act of courage happening here in Washington State.”

Christopher Rufo

Camas walkout enters the campaign

Kruse's blame has a place to land, because the question the Camas girls answered with their feet is on the ballot. Clark County Today reports that the issue is before Washington voters in the Nov. 3 general election as Initiative 638. The same outlet reports that a male runner on the Camas High School girls' team has put Clark County in the spotlight. On the same Tuesday as the race, the issue came up in a live televised debate between Third Congressional District candidates Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and John Braun⁵.

Camas girls walk off the course

The race behind that debate question was a home meet on Tuesday, Oct. 13, with Battle Ground visiting Camas⁶. Clark County Today reports that a dozen Camas athletes and five Battle Ground runners refused to race the male competitor and walked off the course right after the start⁵. Legal Insurrection reports that Camas runner Holly Burns and the girls with her walked past the starting line and into the tree line, giving up one of their high school competitions. Kruse’s post says she was told seniors and team captains also refused to run, while much of the Battle Ground team stayed home. Amy E. Sousa, who said she was there, noted that the Camas girls had walked off against their own teammate: "They were on the same team as the boy, so an even more courageous act³!"

Holly's father, Kevin Burns, told OutKick that his daughter first wanted to play it safe, and that her parents would not push her. "The more I heard about her friends wanting to do something, the more I heard about her team wanting to do something, we definitely were in support of that," he said⁷.

OutKick reports that the runner finished 76th in a boys' junior varsity race on Sept. 5, and was running in the girls' race by Sept. 15⁷. Since the switch, Legal Insurrection reports, he has won a varsity meet and taken second at an invitational³. In Saturday's Women's Elite 5K, he placed 39th in a field of 135. His time was 18:36.8. In the men's race, that time would have put him last among 159 runners, about 30 seconds behind the field. With seventeen girls off the course on Tuesday, he finished second in the girls' race⁵.

Initiative 638 would change eligibility

The House Office of Program Research says the 2025-26 WIAA handbook gives all students the opportunity to participate in WIAA activities according to their gender identity⁸. The WIAA lets athletes compete according to gender identity, a policy The Columbian reported is in line with state anti-discrimination protections³.

Initiative 638 would require school district boards or voluntary nonprofit entities such as the WIAA to bar biologically male students from female-only individual or team competitions in activities with separate male and female classifications⁹.A student entering those events would provide a provider-signed statement of biological sex as part of the routine sports physical, based on reproductive anatomy or genetic makeup. The provider could also verify biological sex using normal endogenously produced testosterone levels.

The Legislature’s inaction sends the initiative to voters for approval or rejection at the general election, according to the House Office of Program Research⁸. If voters approve the measure, the state cross-country championships will take place before it takes effect. OutKick reports that Washington's state cross-country championships are set for Nov. 7, before that date arrives⁷. The WIAA's own member administrators did not pass an April advisory amendment limiting girls' sports to biological females, and the association said its Executive Board can revise policy only if state law changes¹⁰. Parents who want that change have one vehicle, and it is on their ballot.

Candidates clash over girls’ sports

KATU reporter Wright Gazaway asked Braun whether he supports banning transgender girls and women from girls' and women's sports, and Braun answered, "Yes." Braun said he raised three daughters who played sports in high school and college, and added, "This is about fairness and safety, about biology. We have Title IX for a reason." He said the policy "doesn’t prevent them from playing sports. It just means they have to play sports by their biological sex," and he cited the Camas walkout by name⁵.

Gluesenkamp Perez answered, "I’m libertarian on this issue. I think that these decisions are best made by local stakeholders." She conceded, "Fundamentally, I agree it’s not fair for boys to compete in girls sports," and then objected to the remedy: "It’s not fair to make girls certify their sex to the state just to play softball." The House summary shows that the WIAA handbook already requires a physical exam and approval by a qualified health care provider before the first practice⁸. Asked whether there is a problem to solve, she said, "This is very, very rare. This is not a common issue," and changed the subject to sex abuse⁵. Seventeen girls walked off a course in Clark County that same day, so how rare was it for them? RNC Research has already posted the clip of her saying it³.

Washington should protect girls’ sports

Girls’ sports are for girls, and Washington should write sex-based categories into law. After that, voters can still register in person at county elections offices until 8 p.m. on Election Day⁴.

Camas’ girls are scheduled to run their next championship meet Oct. 21 at Lewisville Regional Park under current rules⁷; Washington voters should approve Initiative 638 to protect girls’ sports.