Riley Gaines makes her feelings known for media personality Sage Steele after latter expresses gratitude to 24-year-old for advocacy in women's sports

Riley Gaines recently reacted towards Sage Steele's words of appreciation for her after both attended the Executive Order signing ceremony. The two were present on the occasion of Donald Trump signing the EO, which effectively banned trans athletes from participating in women's sports.

Steele, who runs the popular podcast 'The Sage Steele Show' on YouTube, appreciated Gaines for her efforts towards protecting women's sports. She posted on her X timeline:

"I don’t have the words right now to describe how I feel about my friend @Riley_Gaines_ This pic was taken today at The @WhiteHouse right after @POTUS signed the EO to keep men/boys OUT of womens/girls sports - fixing what Biden & Harris destroyed with Title IX. What President Trump did today would not have happened without Riley. She CHOSE to stand up, speak up, fight, and bring other young women with her. I love you, Riley! Thank you for helping me and so many others realize that we cannot afford to stay silent!"

Gaines responded to Steele's kind words by sharing her post as she wrote:

"Sage Steele is one of those humans who is even more sincere, authentic, and beautiful in real life. If you know her, you know she's got a heart of pure gold. I'm so grateful and proud to call her my friend. Truly, my role model."

Riley Gaines had recently backed three female swimmers, who had filed a lawsuit against the Ivy League, NCAA and the Harvard University. The swimmers accused the three entities of violating the Title IX rules.

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President Donald Trump on Riley Gaines' struggle to protect women's sports

President Donald Trump on Riley Gaines' struggle to save women's sports [Image Source : Getty]

Riley Gaines has been campaigning for the protection of women's sports for a long time. She was therefore invited to the EO signing ceremony by the US administration led by President Donald Trump.

Interestingly, to everyone's surprise, President Trump not only acknowledged Gaines' efforts towards the same, but also appreciated her efforts. He said:

"We're honored to be joined today by many incredible advocates for women's sports, including the brave swimmer at the forefront of this battle, and Riley Gaines is a person that I've been watching. She's fought hard. Riley was a 12-time All-American, well that's pretty good, 12-time All-American who sacrificed countless hours in the pool just for a chance at the title that's so important to her."

The overwhelmed social activist shared several posts on her X timeline to thank President Trump for his kind words. In one of the posts, she wrote:

"I can't even tell you how much this visual means to me."

Gaines and President Trump had jointly protested against the participation of Algerian boxer Imane Khelif at the Paris Olympics. The 24-year-old swimmer turned social activist also campaigned for Trump during the presidential elections of 2024.