Clara Adams, a championship high school track athlete originally from Salinas who rose to national attention last year after being stripped of her gold medal at the state finals for spritzing her shoes with a fire extinguisher to celebrate her win, has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the California Interscholastic Federation.
Adams was a 16-year-old sophomore at North Salinas High School and ranked No. 1 in the 200 and 400 meters in the U.S. when she re-enacted what world-class sprinter Maurice Greene did after a victory in 2004. Adams was also disqualified from competing in the 200-meter final, in which she was ranked second.
The lawsuit was filed Monday, June 1, in U.S. District Court in Fresno. The lawsuit accuses the CIF of denying Adams her due process and First Amendment rights.
Adams seeks restoration of her 2025 400 meter championship title, correcting the records and expunging the disciplinary action; damages; and legal costs.
“Clara’s celebration was harmless, brief and rooted in the history of her sport,” Adanté Pointer, of the Oakland civil rights firm Pointer & Buelna, said in a statement. “Her sportsmanship is beyond reproach. She did not cheat, interfere with another runner, or threaten anyone. She won the race, the win was certified, and CIF took it away from her in a disgraceful act of public punishment intended to humiliate a teenage girl who had just won the greatest victory of her young career.”
Adams and her family have since moved to Long Beach.
On May 23, 2025, Adams, now 17 and a junior at Wilson High School, renowned for track and field, set a CIF sectional record in the 400 meters of 51.98 seconds, and won the CIF Championship with 52:28.
“This was a moment that should have belonged to Clara, her family, her team and the crowd that watched her win,” Pointer said in a statement. “CIF had every opportunity to correct this over the past year. This lawsuit asks a jury to restore what Clara earned, clear her record and reaffirm the fact that student-athletes have constitutional rights.”
Read the full complaint:
This article originally appeared on Salinas Californian: Former Salinas track star Clara Adams files civil rights lawsuit
Reporting by Roseann Cattani, Salinas Californian / Salinas Californian
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Roseann Cattani, Salinas Californian | USA TODAY Network
