A transgender high school student who was pushed into the national spotlight this week after President Donald Trump threatened to withhold federal funding from California over her participation in this weekend’s state track and field championships has advanced to the finals.

A.B. Hernandez, a public high school junior in Southern California, is the athlete at the center of the controversy. She placed first in long jump, first in high jump and first in triple jump on Friday in the preliminary round of the championships, making her qualified to compete in the finals in all three events Saturday.

A small group, mostly women, stood outside the stadium in Clovis, protesting A.B.’s participation in the event while she was competing. Some were holding up signs reading, “Save Girls Sports” and an airplane with a banner reading, “No Boys in Girls’ Sports” was seen flying over the stadium, prompting some protesters to look up and cheer.

“Please be hereby advised that large scale Federal Funding will be held back, maybe permanently, if the Executive Order on this subject matter is not adhered to,” Trump said Tuesday in a post on Truth Social, alluding to his February executive order titled, “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.”

A.B. qualified for the state meet, prompting the agency governing high school sports in California to allow more cisgender girls – whose gender identity conforms with their sex assigned at birth – to compete.

Coming into the state meet, A.B. ranked first in both long jump and triple jump, and 14th in high jump, according to Mile Split California data.

With trans athletes’ participation in girls’ and women’s sports a legal, political and cultural debate stoked by the political right, the White House has tried to use federal money to get states to align their policies with its ideology. Here’s what we know about the California student athlete at the center of the latest controversy:

California changes state meet rules

At last weekend’s Southern Section Masters Meet, A.B. finished first in the triple jump and long jump, qualifying her for the upcoming state championships – thus preventing lower-ranked competitors from advancing while drawing ire from some in the community.

The California Interscholastic Federation decided at the end of the weekend’s qualifying meets to “pilot an entry process” for the championships, inviting those “biological female” student athletes who would otherwise have earned a qualifying mark – if not for the participation of trans students – an automatic entry to the finals, said in the announcement Tuesday.

The rule change only applies to this weekend’s competition, the federation said without specifying whether the rule will stay in place.

Two athletes coached by Keinan Briggs, who’s not affiliated with specific schools, placed lower in last weekend’s competition than A.B., who attends Jurupa Valley High School.