NEW HAMPSHIRE — Parker Tirrell and Iris Turmelle withdrew their lawsuit in New Hampshire challenging the state's 2024 law banning transgender girls from school sports. The withdrawal followed a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that upheld state bans on transgender athletes in girls' sports.

The plaintiffs cited personal hardships as a factor in their decision. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that barring transgender girls and women from sports teams does not violate Title IX, upholding state laws that prohibit them from playing on school and college athletic teams.

Chris Erchull, a lawyer for the plaintiffs with GLAD Law, stated, "This case was always about two courageous young girls who simply wanted the same opportunities as their peers to participate in school life." Erchull added, "Their willingness to stand up to extraordinary hostility made clear the human cost of laws that target transgender youth." A federal judge had previously granted a court order allowing the girls to play sports while their case proceeded.

The parties had agreed to pause the case pending the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on similar state laws in Idaho and West Virginia. In 2025, the plaintiffs amended their complaint to challenge President Donald Trump's executive order titled "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports."

Iris Turmelle and her family moved out of New Hampshire last summer. Amy Manzetti, Iris Turmelle's mother, said that new state laws, including one signed by Governor Kelly Ayotte prohibiting medical professionals from providing puberty blockers and hormone replacement therapy to new transgender patients under age 18, made staying too risky. Manzetti said, "Though there may be a carve-out for people already receiving gender-affirming care, that is way too close a call for us to risk staying." She added, "Other New Hampshire laws also seek to erase her."

Parker Tirrell, age 17, began her junior year on the girls' junior varsity soccer team last fall but stopped playing a few weeks into the season. Sara Tirrell, Parker's mother, noted, "With all of the political stuff going on, soccer wasn't just about the game anymore." She said, "We were on a lot of pins and needles, especially after the previous season." Tirrell referenced an increased presence of school administrators at soccer games and bus drivers pulling in closer to the field so students were not in the parking lot during games last fall. She also remarked on concerns about potential protests, stating, "Were there any local Facebook groups where they were sort of agitating about potential protests and how do we prepare, and what are walking into, and we never kind of knew."

Two fathers from an opposing team were banned from school grounds for wearing pink wristbands marked "XX" during an away game, and they have since appealed that ruling. Tirrell said Parker could see the stress on everyone involved, including her teammates and coaches. "Parker didn't talk about it a lot, but I think she could see that stress for everybody — for her, for her teammates, for her coaches," she said. She added, "She felt kind of bad about pulling them all into that circus again. And so she ultimately said, 'This isn't fun anymore and I don't want to do it.'" Parker Tirrell plans to continue using her voice against discrimination.