"Young girls are forced to bear this burden"-Riley Gaines condemns harassment of a West Virginian swimmer by trans athlete in a past incident

House Oversight Committee Holds Hearing Examining Female Athletics And Title IX
House Oversight Committee Holds Hearing Examining Female Athletics And Title IX

Former NCAA swimming icon Riley Gaines raised her voice about a transgender athlete defeating a girl on the track and also harassing her. Gaines not only pointed out the wrong in this practice but also took a jab at US President Joe Biden for re-writing Title IX.

In 2022, Gaines met trans swimmer Lia Thomas at the NCAA Championship, where both athletes tied for fifth in the 200-yard freestyle. However, Gaines was denied the fifth-place trophy. This ensued from Thomas' 500-yard freestyle NCAA champion medal claim, making them a favorite of the 200-yard roster.

The unjust decision of the judges didn't sit well with the 24-year-old Gaines, who rallied against biological boys competing with girls in sports and has been a staunch advocate of the same to date.

Adaleia Cross, a 15-year-old track athlete from West Virginia shared her experience with FOX News, where she talked about how a six-year-old biological boy identifying as trans defeated her when she was seven. The situation worsened when she was also harassed by the "boy".

The Federal Government under President Joe Biden didn't side with the young girl since its latest policies aimed at the protection of trans athletes but women. Sharing her reaction to this news, Riley Gaines took to her X (formerly Twitter) to write:

"I can't believe headlines like this even exist. Yet again, young girls are forced to bear this burden. Says a lot about the people who are supposed to be protecting them."

The latter part of her sentence questioned the protection offered by the Joe Biden administration for women. In 2020, the "Protect Women in Sports" Act of Title IX came into force to bar trans athletes from federal funding for competing in the women's division. However, this Act was rewritten by the Biden administration in 2021.

Riley Gaines claps back at a fan for remarking on her body features

Riley Gaines took to X to highlight a fan comment under her photo posing in swimwear. The fan wrote:

"Riley Gaines is a man," remarking on her muscular abs.

In response, 24-year-old Gaines implied how mediocre men are trying to barge into women's sports to secure wins.

"Riley Gaines is an athlete who spent 5-6 hours a day training so she could be the best she could possibly be only to have a less-than-mediocre man come along and steal our titles and trophies. And I would bet money (whether man or woman) you would pay to be this fit."

Gaines continues to raise her voice against trans athletes participating in women's sports and also joined other women to file a legal case against the National Collegiate Athletic Association.

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Edited by Vaishnavi Iyer
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