LEWISTON – Kelly Godsey planned to play basketball when she arrived at Bates College in the fall of 2002, but instead picked up the shot put and hammer and went on to become an 11-time All-American track and field thrower, possibly the school’s most decorated female athlete ever.

For the English major from Parker, Colo., who hopes to earn a spot on the U.S. national team and compete in the 2008 Olympics, there were bigger changes to come.

Godsey spent last summer and fall “coming out” by taking on a male gender identity, a change made known to the Bates community and the colleges with which Bates competes. Swapping the name Kelly for Keelin, Godsey asked that professors, coaches and teammates use the male pronoun in athletic department press releases and casual conversation.

Now a senior, Godsey became aware of gender issues well before arriving at college.

“I knew it in seventh grade, when people really started hassling me about being gay,” Godsey told the (Lewiston) Sun-Journal. “I could never really figure that out, because I didn’t think of myself as gay. I thought of myself as straight. I liked women, but that was a straight thing for me to do.”

Godsey, who plans to defer hormone therapy and eventual surgery until 2008 at the earliest, continues to compete as a female.

“We are playing by the rules as the NCAA defines them,” said athletic director Suzanne Coffey. “This is a case of gender identity. Keelin simply has begun using the male pronoun while competing in women’s track.”

Coffey discussed any potential legal and competitive issues with the NCAA, while track and field coach Jennifer Hartshorn addressed rival coaches in the New England Small College Athletic Conference, which endorsed Godsey’s right to compete.

NCAA regulations state that an athlete is categorized according to his or her sex by state law, which considers a pre-operative Godsey physiologically female, pronouns notwithstanding. As long as Godsey does not use male hormone supplements that would be considered performance enhancers, a mandatory drug test at any championship meet sanctioned by the NCAA or International Olympic Committee should turn up clean.

Coaches and teammates have respected Godsey’s wishes, unfailingly referring to “Keelin” and “he,” and Godsey and school officials deny any serious repercussions thus far on campus or at women’s track competitions.

There has been little change in Godsey’s appearance, notable for short, spiked hair and a tall, muscular build.

“(Other teams) probably don’t even realize it,” said Ashley Wentworth, a senior middle-distance runner from North Andover, Mass., and fellow captain of the women’s team with Godsey. “He looks the same as he did last year. Right now, it’s only the name that’s different.”

“He” could win another individual national championship in the 20-pound weight throw next month, and again when the outdoor track season concludes in May.

“Not many people do what I’m doing, and I’m doing what I’m doing only because I still want to compete,” Godsey said. “This was the only way I was going to do it, and the only way I could do it. There are no rules being broken. I’m not doing anything illegal, anything wrong. I’m not doing anything other than going by a different pronoun and a different name.”

Godsey, who has applied to graduate school as a male in hopes of becoming a physical therapist, said reaction among family and friends runs the gamut from accepting to appalled.

“I lost a lot of friends over this,” Godsey said. “With family, it’s more like the relationships are gone. We don’t talk about it at all. That’s kind of how it’s dealt with. Some members of my family are perfectly OK with it. Some people say stuff, yeah, but I just don’t associate with those people. I essentially try to avoid them.”