The question “Should transgender athletes be included in women’s sports?” causes a lot of debate anytime it’s brought up. Athletes, coaches, referees/umpires, and sports managers all have varying opinions on the topic.
Riley Gaines, a former American swimmer from Tennessee, has her take on the issue. She is also a dedicated advocate for the safety of women in sports. Therefore, Gaines is on the frontlines for the legal battle to prevent transgender women from participating in female sports.
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She has also testified supporting the Save Women’s Sports Act, also known as House Bill 68. If successful, this act would prevent trans athletes from participating in women’s sports in Ohio. Furthermore, it would ban physicians from performing any gender reassignment surgery or care for minors.
However, in the process of fighting for the act, Gaines has received a lot of backlash as well as support. In this case, it’s from a US representative after a hearing titled ‘The Importance of Protecting Female Athletics and Title IX.’
The hearing occurred on December 5, 2023, at the House of Subcommittee for Healthcare and Financial Services. There, several witnesses gave their testimonies as Biden’s administration urged the committee to include trans athletes in women’s sports.
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Gaines has never supported this, and she made her stance quite clear. However, House of Representatives member Summer Lee disagreed with her. Instead, Lee called the 23-year-old a transphobe. In response, Gaines directly addressed the representative’s claims.
She said “Of course, there is a place for everyone, regardless of gender identity, regardless of sexual orientation, regardless of race or what sports you play. There’s a place for everyone to play sports in this country.”
“Inclusion cannot be prioritized over safety and fairness and ranking. Member Lee, if my testimony makes me transphobic, then I believe your opening monologue makes you a misogynist.”
As expected, Lee did not take it lightly in the hearing. She responded by demanding that Gaines’s retract her statement on the grounds of ‘engaging in personalities.’
This rule prevents personal attacks from an unparliamentary member. Surprisingly, Lee later withdrew her demand to take down Gaines’s comment, but it didn’t change the former swimmer’s mind.
Following this, she shared a video of the incident online and wrote, “And I stand by that. As do the records, considering her move to strike my word didn’t work how she wanted.”
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Gaines’ stance on this matter comes from her personal experience. She competed against transgender swimmer Lia Thomas and, according to her, saw firsthand how much of an advantage a trans woman has in sports.
To Gaines, there is a biological advantage to the trans athletes over the women. Therefore, she now fights for women to help them overcome this challenge. She also recently announced her support for Republican primary presidential candidate Ron DeSantis for this reason.
According to the former swimmer, backing DeSantis is “the right thing for women.” There would be a definite outcome of all the hearings, and a law would determine if transgender people could participate in sports.
Do you think transwomen should compete in sports?
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