Five times a year, female Sabot sailors of all ages on the California coast participate in a regatta, or series of sailing races, through the Southern California Women’s Sailing Association (SCWSA). In 8-foot, 1-person sailboats known as Naples Sabots, competitors 18 years of age and up vie for the best score in their respective divisions. 

This year, the SCWSA’s female sailors were forced to compete against a 66-year-old trans-identifying male, who entered into the Women’s B division after previously competing and winning against male sailors. Unsurprisingly, the male went on to win the women’s competition as well.

Susan Jennings, a longtime female sailor and SCWSA secretary, exclusively revealed to IW Features that this man, who goes by the name Jennifer DesCombes, gained access not only to women’s sailing events, but also to the female all-ages locker rooms in the various yacht clubs where competitions are held. The SCWSA does not determine the clubs’ restroom or locker room policies.

To add insult to injury, because the male sailor won each SCWSA regatta, he was able to take home the Women’s B Fleet perpetual trophy, an award that had been given only to women for more than 50 years. 

It all began in 2023, when Jennings said the man first expressed interest in sailing at her club. At first, he sailed in the “Mixed C” category as Jeff DesCombes, where less experienced men and women race together. DesCombes ended up winning this category.

But then, ahead of the SCWSA’s first regatta of the year in March 2024, DesCombes sent a letter to Jennings’ group announcing his transgender identity and new name and sharing that he was on hormone therapy. He then began sailing in the Women’s B Fleet.

As captain of her club’s A Fleet, Jennings said she had several concerns, especially regarding his presence in the women’s bathroom. After all, at the various yacht clubs which host SCWSA events, girls as young as six years old use that same restroom, and the shower area has little to “no privacy at all,” she said. DesCombes has used the women’s facilities at most yacht clubs he has competed at, according to Jennings.

Making matters worse, Jennings alleged DesCombes told another sailor he was not planning to get sexual reassignment surgery. 

Jennings raised this concern both to DesCombes and her fellow SCWSA members, many of whom agreed but worried they’d be inviting legal trouble if they tried to prevent him from using the women’s facilities. 

“Everybody has to tell him he can use whatever bathroom he wants. I mean, he’s got free reign to go into the shower area,” Jennings said. “Everybody is running scared for the potential of a lawsuit that we’re ‘discriminating’ against a transgender.”

The threat of a lawsuit is all too probable, thanks to California’s progressive anti-discrimination laws. In 2003, California adopted statewide protections against discrimination based on gender identity or expression and sexual orientation. This law makes it illegal in the state to prohibit individuals from using public accommodations, including restrooms, on the basis of their gender identity or sexual orientation. 

DesCombes did not respond to IW Features’ request for comment.

Before the first regatta, Jennings said she tried to rally the Women’s B Fleet to refuse to sail against DesCombes. She said a number of them agreed and chose to protest.

But that meant if they wanted to compete at all, they had to instead sail with the A Fleet, which is made up of more experienced sailors. As a result, several women chose to stay and compete in the B Fleet. They all lost to the trans-identifying male, who had the highest running score after the fleet’s final regatta on Nov. 9. 

After winning the Women’s B Fleet, DesCombes will now move on to sail in the A Fleet next year, according to Jennings. But she refuses to compete against him. So in 2025, Jennings said she plans to downgrade herself from A Fleet to B Fleet voluntarily. 

“I’m not going to sail with a man,” she said. “I think he’s not a woman, and I won’t put myself in that position to sail with him. I just strongly believe that.”

Her grievances are justified. According to Jennings, men have several advantages in Sabot sailing, though it might not seem that way at first. 

Since Sabot boats are small, the heavier and larger you are, the slower you risk going. Jennings said this has led several female Sabot sailors to let their guard down when competing against the male. 

Yet, when males compete against females in Sabot, the male sailor will almost always win, Jennings said. In fact, in the Junior Sabot Nationals, where young boys and girls compete against one another, just five female sailors have won since 1948, she pointed out. 

From faster reaction time, to larger hands, to superior grip strength, and more, Jennings explained that male sailors have a notable advantage against female sailors. 

That’s why World Sailing, the international governing body for sailing, issued its Transgender Participation Policy in October 2024, effective January 2025, stating that males who have undergone male puberty cannot compete in the female category of an event or participate in a mixed category as a “female athlete.” 

U.S. Sailing, however, still allows sailors to “self-identify and compete as his/her identified gender” upon providing one form of documentation that proves “the sailor’s gender in his/her ‘everyday life’ matches his/her racing gender.” The SCWSA follows the U.S. Sailing policy regarding gender identification.

Nationwide, stories of young male athletes taking advantage of these looser gender policies, winning female trophies, and earning college scholarships meant for females, are piling up. However, Jennings argued her story proves this issue is affecting all women — not just school-aged girls and collegiate athletes.

“This concerns women of all ages,” Jennings said. “If you are a female of any age, this is probably going to affect you at some point in your life, either directly or indirectly.”

Though the fight to keep women’s sports female has seen increased awareness, Jennings added that many women may not recognize what’s at stake until they’re forced to confront the issue head-on. 

“When it affects you personally, you take a whole different view on this. Suddenly, it’s your kids, your grandkids, and yourself that have to share the space with a man,” she said. And no matter what that man might say, she added, “he’s not a woman.”