Transgender Athlete Andraya Yearwood Set To Compete At NBNI

By Mary Albl of DyeStat

The name of Cromwell CT junior Andraya Yearwood appeared Tuesday on the updated list of entries for New Balance Nationals Indoor. 

Yearwood, a sprinter, has made national headlines for being a 17-year-old transgender girl. She clocked 7.01 seconds for 55 meters Feb. 16 at the Connecticut State Open Championships to officially qualify for the dash at nationals this weekend. Her time in the 55 meters is currently one of the 10 fastest nationally.

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Yearwood’s mother, Ngozi Nnaji, who handed the registration process for her daughter, said they registered prior to the closing date. And in addition to the qualifying time, there was supplemental documentation and information that they provided in order to the meet the NSAF Transgender Participation Policy & Procedure. Yearwood met the requirements.

According to NSAF, “Pre-pubescent transgender girls are eligible for NSAF competitions based on their affirmed gender.  Consistent with USATF rules and IOC guidelines, post-pubescent transgender girls are eligible for NSAF competitions based on their affirmed gender once they have completed a year’s course of gender affirming hormones. Gender affirming surgery may also satisfy the policy requirements but is not required.” Read the NSAF's policy here.

“Obviously being transgender and identifying with a particular sex, in her case being female, I think from our perspective we’d like to think identifying is enough…but understand the policy that was put into place and respect the policy that was put into place,” Nnaji said.

Nnaji said her daughter was never denied entry, and the process took about a week and a half. Nnaji said they found out Tuesday that Yearwood was accepted and will be able to compete at nationals this weekend.

Another trailblazing sprinter from Connecticut, Terry Miller of Bloomfield, who is also a transgender female, recently finished first at the New England High School Indoor Track and Field Championships in the 55 (6.94) and 300 (39.27). As of Wednesday afternoon, Miller was not on the list to compete this weekend.