Family of Autistic Wrestler Thanks Governor for Helping Settle LHSAA Dispute

The family of a Covington, La., boy who was barred from participating in wrestling competitions due to his autism diagnosis is thanking Louisiana governor Jeff Landry for stepping in to help their son compete.

In turn, Landry thanked the Louisiana High School Athletic Association for reversing its earlier decision to sideline John Martinez with a social media post.

Jennifer Martinez told New Orleans NBC affiliate WDSU that her son has wrestled since he was 6 years old and began competing for St. Paul's Lasallian Catholic School in the eighth grade.

Because John attended a private school and took special education courses, his mother says the LHSAA ruled he was ineligible.

The family filed for an emergency injunction, allowing John to compete in his sophomore year after being benched during his freshman season. In addition, the family filed a lawsuit, which was settled only under the agreement that the LHSAA would change the rules for students with exceptionalities to compete at private schools, according to Martinez.

The day after the settlement, John was deemed ineligible again by the LHSAA and was forced to forfeit a victory on the mat

"Tenth grade last year, they actually denied him and wrote on the paper because of special needs, so that's when I had had it," Martinez said. "He struggles with self-confidence so much, so having that is literally everything to him. I feel like when they take this away from him, they pull every little bit of self-confidence that he had away."

According to the Martinez family, Landry heard their story and stepped in, overturning LHSAA's decision. The LHSAA sent an email permitting John to compete at the varsity level at his school.