Disqualified ‘wedgie’ swimmer wins
An Alaska high school earned a victory out of the water as well as in when the Alaska School Activities Association reversed a controversial disqualification because of a swimsuit that an official ruled to be a violation of the sport’s modesty rules.
The win by Breckyn Willis, a swimmer at Anchorage’s Dimond High School, was restored on Wednesday, less than an hour after a formal appeal by the Anchorage School District on behalf of the senior student and her team.
The school district had called the disqualification ‘‘heavyhanded and unnecessary,’’ asserting that ‘‘our swimmer was targeted based solely on how a standard, school-issued uniform happened to fit the shape of her body’’.
‘‘ASAA has determined the disqualification was the result of the misapplication of the rule and as a result is being overturned,’’ the association wrote in a statement, adding that all team and individual points would be restored.
Willis had just won a 100-yard freestyle race on Saturday when she was disqualified for her suit, a first for Alaska, and the ASAA, which governs athletics in the state’s schools, reminded officials that they must notify a coach before an athlete’s heat if inappropriate attire is observed.
‘‘ASAA will be granting this request, for the following reasons,’’ its statement said, citing the 2019-2020 NFHS Swim and Dive Rule Book rule 3.3.2 (Uniforms).
‘‘While the rules do allow for swimmers to be disqualified [see Rule 3.3 below], the rules clearly state that ‘‘when an official discovers a competitor wearing illegal attire . . . prior to the start of the heat/dive . . . the official shall . . . notify the coach of the competitor . . .’’
Lauren Langford, who coaches swimming at another high school in the area, told The Washington
that she believes racism, in addition to sexism, may have been a factor because Willis is among the few non-white athletes in a predominantly white sport.
‘‘All of these girls are all wearing suits that are cut the same way,’’ Langford said. ‘‘And the only girl who gets disqualified is a mixed-race girl with rounder, curvier features.’’
Willis did not select the swimsuit – it was a team uniform issued by the school.
Although she and her teammates were dressed identically, she was the only one cited for a uniform violation.
Annette Rohde, who was working as an official during the meet, told the Anchorage Daily News that another female official said that the bottom of the swimsuit ‘‘was so far up I could see butt cheek touching butt cheek’’. Rohde predicted that the decision would backfire.
Langford told The Post that the girl, who also won the 200 individual medley and swam on the 400 freestyle relay team that finished first, had been made to feel that her curves were a problem before.
Last year, a parent took a photo of her backside and shared it with other parents to demonstrate that girls on the team were wearing inappropriate swimwear. (District officials said that Dimond High School’s assistant principal ‘‘indicated to the parent who took the photographs that it was not permissible for him to take pictures of others’ children and that he should stop immediately’’).
‘‘That to me is so inappropriate,’’ Langford said. She noted that the teen girl has been accused of hiking her suit up on purpose, but suits often ride up unintentionally. ‘‘We have a term for it – it’s called a suit wedgie,’’ she said. ‘‘And wedgies happen. It’s uncomfortable. No-one’s going to walk around that way intentionally.’’
District officials said on Tuesday that Dimond High School ‘‘made deliberate efforts over the last year’’ to meet those requirements – in particular, picking out the regulation swimsuit that the teen was wearing when she was stripped of her victory.
‘‘If the suit was a problem, they all should have been disqualified,’’ Langford said. ‘‘But they weren’t.’’