Trans Runner Joins Female Marathon, Beats 14,000 Other Women; Olympian Reacts

A transgender runner beat 14,000 women in the female category of the London Marathon.

Glenique Frank, the 54-year-old trans runner, placed 6,160th out of 20,123 runners.

Frank also participated in last month's Tokyo Marathon's female category, finishing 2,829th out of 8,609, beating almost 6,000 women participants.

Frank's performances irked Mara Yamauchi, a two-time Olympian who finished sixth in the marathon at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

On her Twitter account, Yamauchi blasted London Marathon's rules for transgender participants.

"Since 31 March, [World Athletics] and [British Athletics] have banned post-puberty males from the [female] category. Under UKA transitional arrangements, males who had already entered races in the [female] category could still race," Yamauchi said.

"I assume this is how Frank was allowed to race [yesterday]. Nevertheless, males in the [female] category is UNFAIR for females," Yamauchi added.

Frank defended herself, telling the New York Post she was forced to compete in the male category in previous marathons, including New York in November. She said she was instructed to use her name and gender, as listed on her passport.

Frank said she participated in the New York Marathon wearing a bright-red bra and a long pink wig.

She argued that she "ticked female because I see myself as female," adding that she already knew her identity since she was five years old.

The trans runner claimed it was a "traumatic" experience to be attacked for joining female marathons as a transgender while she was "trying to spread joy and happiness."

Frank insisted that she was not competing for prize money or a place on the podium, adding that she joined marathons to raise charity funds.

Despite being criticized by Yamauchi, Frank said she understands and respects her.

For now, Frank said she would participate in upcoming marathons as "other" or "male" to avoid further criticism.

In the U.S., there is a growing movement to ban transgender athletes from participating in female sports teams.

The Republican-controlled House of Representatives is poised to vote on a bill banning transgender women and girls from competing in women's and girls' school sports.

The bill would require a student's sex to be "based on an individual's reproductive biology and genetics at birth."

However, the bill would not likely pass the Democratic-controlled Senate, and President Joe Biden said he opposed the bill since it discriminates against transgender people.

According to LGBT Movement Advancement Project (LGBTMAP), there are 21 states, mostly Republican, which banned transgender students from participating in sports consistent with their gender identity.