On the final day of the 2023 UCI World Cycling Championships, the streets of Glasgow saw protesters demanding rights for transgender women. Thousands of protesters were seen outcrying for transgender women's rights with their sign, "Let Trans Women Win," which has now gone viral on the internet.
In May, cyclist Austin Killips grabbed a victory in the UCI women’s stage race, becoming the first transgender athlete to win at the event. Although it was a proud moment for the 27-year-old, her win eventually sparked massive controversy in the cycling event.
Killips victory had raised concerns among female cyclists for unfair competition rules. As a result, the concerned authorities were compelled to discuss the issue and reach a consensus before kickstarting the 2023 UCI World Cycling Championships.
After months of discussion in mid-2023, the World cycling governing bodies decided to rule out trans women from participating in women cycling events ahead of the championship in August.
Instead, they were directed to participate in the 'men/open' category. However, apparently, the verdict has been receiving backlash from transgender women supporters.
On Sunday (August 13), the official Twitter page of For Women Scotland shared a glimpse of transgender women supporters in Glasgow at the world championship. A large crowd of people were spotted fiercely holding the “Let Trans Women Win” sign.
The Twitter page also expressed its views on the issues in its caption:
“The sign (from UCI in Glasgow today) says "Let Trans Women Win". Not enough that they are "included", they are openly confirming what we all already knew, they want to take women's prizes."
Another instance of people protesting against transgender women
In May, transgender cyclist Lesley Mumford won the 100-mile Desert Gravel race defeating 43 women in the 40-49 category. The 46-year-old also emerged sixth in the overall women's category. In her category, she defeated second-placed Lindsey Kriete by 17 minutes and third-place Michelle Van Sickle by over 30 minutes.
Surprisingly, when it was time for the winners of the category to receive their honors at the podium, the second and the third-placed athletes pulled a no-show, leaving Lesley Mumford stand-alone at the podium. She shared a snap of the astonishing moment on her Instagram with the caption:
“I have no idea why so many people bailed before the podiums, but they did. I swear I wasn’t the only one in my age group."
As the picture went viral, trans athletes received backlash on social media for not competing in the non-binary category offered by the event. Also, netizens supported the no-show gesture of the other two competitors as a silent protest against trans athletes in women's sports.