Olivia Viola, a Crean Lutheran High School sprinter, is back at the center of a heated California debate over who gets to compete in girls’ sports. Her parents, Tracy and Juan Luis, have publicly criticized Gov. Gavin Newsom, while Republican gubernatorial hopeful Sheriff Chad Bianco has promised to use the power of the office to protect female athletic divisions. This article follows Viola’s experience, the public reaction across California, and where voters stand as the election nears.
Viola has already faced a season where a trans competitor toppled her personal best and cost her a state berth, and now the same situation is repeating. She has spoken out for herself and for other female athletes, drawing both support and criticism. For Viola, faith informs her view, but she insists the issue is broader than religion — it is about fair competition for all women.
“I would say it’s unfair to everyone, I wouldn’t say it’s specific to Christians, I would say it’s unfair to all women who have to compete against [trans athletes]. But what I do think is unfair is pegging Christians as the bad guys or the bigots for not wanting a male in our spaces,” Viola said. Her words capture why this has become such a flashpoint: it’s not only about teams, it’s tied to identity, fairness, and who gets to speak up.
Now 18, Viola can vote and says she plans to cast her ballot this fall for Sheriff Chad Bianco because he’s made protecting girls’ sports a clear priority. She believes Bianco is one of the few public figures willing to take a stand. That willingness matters to families who feel their daughters’ chances are being compromised by what they see as weak policies.
Bianco has been blunt about how he would act. Bianco told Fox News Digital in an interview in February that he would use “force” as governor to ensure that girls’ sports are protected. “You force people to not,” he said of how to handle schools letting males in girls’ sports. “In our high schools and in our school system, if they are going to allow it, we will not fund that. We will not fund the school, we will not provide them with their money.”
That hard line appeals to many parents who argue biology should determine athletic categories. A Public Policy Institute of California poll found broad opposition to allowing biological males to compete in female divisions, and that sentiment is strongest among public school parents. The poll summed it up plainly: “Most Californians support requiring transgender athletes to compete on teams matching the sex they were assigned at birth.”
Tracy and Juan Luis have been outspoken on their daughter’s behalf and furious with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s response. They slammed the governor after a statement from a source in his office that said Newsom “rejects the right-wing cynical attempt to weaponize this debate as an excuse to vilify individual kids. The governor’s position is simple: stand with all kids and stand up to bullies.”
Their counterstatement did not mince words about how they view the governor’s tone and priorities. “Newsom used aggressive and weaponizing language against 17-year-old girls. In my opinion, his words were aimed at intimidating female athletes into compliance. These girls complicate things for him, so he would prefer them to stay quiet. That is a terrible thing for a governor to do. If the governor had any sense of right and wrong he would be applauding these girls for their courage to stand up for women’s rights,” the parents said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
They also questioned Newsom on the legal and regulatory issues they see as ignored. “In Newsom’s comments there was no discussion about the real root of the problem. He had no response about defying title IX. He had no response about how to fix the very bad policies in California that allow biological males to enter female athletic divisions without any type of clear biological regulations,” the parents added.
Their broader point is straightforward and stark: athletic categories should reflect biological sex, not political or social ideology. They wrote that if you blur those lines, “you’ve stripped away all credibility for fairness.” That line gets to the heart of why this issue galvanized parents, coaches, and voters in California this cycle.
Viola says the feedback she’s received has been largely encouraging, with many people telling her they’re grateful for what she and other girls are doing. At the same time, she and her family say more elected leaders need to step up publicly. Whether Sheriff Bianco’s promise of enforcement becomes policy will depend on who Californians elect and how loudly those voters demand fairness in girls’ sports.
