"Almost two years I've been at it" - Riley Gaines reflects on her journey as an activist to protect women's sports

Riley Gaines, a vocal critic of transgender female athletes in women's sports, recently reflected on her journey as an activist to protect women's sports. On the 38th National Girls and Women in Sports Day, the former NCAA swimmer said she will forever be proud of her accomplishments.

Gaines attributed her achievements to her life-long dedication to the sport, hard work and sacrifice. She said:

"I will forever be proud of my accomplishments - accomplishments that were only attainable as a result of my life-long dedication to my sport, endless hours of hard work and sacrifice, and the creation of a dedicated women's category in sport."

Gaines, 23, pointed out that the women's sporting category is being eroded by discriminatory policies. She highlighted that it allows males, who merely say they are women, to compete on women's teams and in women's events.

In the latest episode of the "Gaines for Girls Podcast," Gaines told her listeners, when prompted by former Olympic gold medal-winning decathlete Caitlyn Jenner, that she had begun raising her voice about women's sports for women since March 2022. She said:

"It's been almost two years I've been at it."

It was the year when Gaines swam against Lia Thomas at the NCAA Championships.

In her opinion piece titled "On National Girls and Women in Sports Day, let's celebrate achievements on the basis of sex, not gender identity," Gaines said:

"In my own experience swimming against Lia (formerly Will) Thomas at our NCAA Championships, I can whole-heartedly attest to the blatantly obvious unfair advantages and disccrimination we faced as female athletes."

The 2022 Southeastern Conference Women's Swimming and Diving Scholar-Athlete of the Year highlighted that Thomas was ranked 462nd nationally as a male before becoming the fastest "female" in the country and winning a national title just one year later.

Riley Gaines on sport being a powerful platform for girls and women

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Gaines believes sport is a powerful platform to empower girls and women. But she doesn't feel empowered. The former competitive swimmer said:

"Female athletes who speak up about the injustice and competitive disadvantage they are at are quickly labeled as "transphobic", "hateful", and "a bigot"."

She added that girls are reluctant to use their voices out of fear of retaliation.

"They are told they will never get a job or into a graduate program if they speak out. They are told their school has already made their stance for them. They are emotionally blackmailed into thinking that they are wrong for being uncomfortable undressing in front of a naked man."

Gained lauded women strong and incredible within their own physical limitations.