<p style="font-weight: 400;">A former University of Pennsylvania swimmer for their women’s team revealed that she and her teammates were forced to undress numerous times each week in the same locker room as biological male Lia Thomas — and when they protested, they were offered psychological counseling.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">Paula Scanlan, now a spokesperson for the Independent Women’s Forum, spoke before a House Judiciary subcommittee on Thursday. Scanlan began by noting that although she was not an NCAA champion, she held the New England independent school league record in the 400-yard freestyle record, a record that has stood since March of 2017.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“Lia, formerly Will, had personal best times in every freestyle event that were faster than the women’s world records,” she stated. “Once the season began, Thomas was leading the country in multiple events while only placing in the top 500 in those events on the men’s team.”</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“While many of you already know this, what you do not know is the experiences of the women of the University of Pennsylvania’s swim team,” she asserted. “My teammates and I were forced to undress in the presence of Lia — a 6’4 biological male fully intact with male genitalia — 18 times per week. Some girls opted to change in bathroom stalls and others used the family bathroom to avoid this. When we tried to voice our concerns to the athletic department, we were told that Lia swimming and being in our locker room was a non-negotiable and we were offered psychological services to attempt to reeducate us to become comfortable with the idea of undressing in front of a male.”</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“To sum up the university’s response, we, the women, were the problem, not the victims,” she said. “We were expected to conform, to move over and shut up. Our feelings didn’t matter. The university was gaslighting and fearmongering women to validate the feelings and identity of a male.”</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">WOMEN&#39;S SPORTS ACTIVIST PAULA SCANLAN:</p>
<p>&quot;We were told that Lia swimming and being in our locker room was a non-negotiable, and we were offered psychological services to attempt to reeducate us to become comfortable with the idea of undressing in front of a male.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/pA42el4J78">pic.twitter.com/pA42el4J78</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Townhall.com (@townhallcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/townhallcom/status/1684574244653748226?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 27, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">In April, Thomas suggested that women athletes who criticize Thomas for competing in women’s sports are “transphobic” but too scared to say so.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">Thomas made the comments — which included the charge that seeing men as men and women as women was derived from “patriarchal ideas” —  while <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Crd1_kAJLRL/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=embed_video_watch_again" target="_blank" rel="noopener">speaking</a> to former NCAA swimmer Schuyler Bailar, who claims to be a man, on Bailar’s podcast.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">Asked about the letter sent to the NCAA by parents of Thomas&#8217; teammates, warning against its rules permitting Thomas to participate in women’s sports, Thomas responded, “They&#8217;re like: ‘Oh, we respect Lia as a woman, as a trans woman, whatever, we respect her identity, we just don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s fair.’ You can&#8217;t really have that sort of half-support, where like, I respect you as a woman here, but not here.”</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“You can&#8217;t do that; you can&#8217;t sort of break down me as a person into little pieces,” Thomas declared.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“They&#8217;re using the guise of feminism to sort of push transphobic beliefs,” Thomas insisted. “I think a lot of people in that camp sort of carry an implicit bias against trans people, but don’t want to, I guess, fully manifest or speak that out. And so they try to just play it off as this sort of half-support.”</p>


Lia Thomas

‘18 Times Per Week’: Former Teammate Of Lia Thomas Recalls Humiliation Of Undressing

Swimming

Transgender Athletes

University of Pennsylvania

Women's sports

<p>Trans-identifying swimmer Lia Thomas dressed the part of an &#8220;Antifa super soldier&#8221; in a recent Instagram post shared by partner Gwen Luxemburg.</p>
<p>Thomas, who made headlines competing for the women&#8217;s NCAA swimming championship while still a fully intact biological male, wore all black – sunglasses, black shorts, a black BDSM harness, and a black shirt emblazoned with the words &#8220;Antifa super soldier.&#8221;</p>
<div id="attachment_588253" style="width: 328px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-588253" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-588253 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/07/Lia-Thomas-Antifa-super-soldier-318x576.jpg" alt="Screenshot/Instagram Stories" width="318" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/07/Lia-Thomas-Antifa-super-soldier-318x576.jpg 318w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/07/Lia-Thomas-Antifa-super-soldier-165x300.jpg 165w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/07/Lia-Thomas-Antifa-super-soldier.jpg 598w" sizes="(max-width: 318px) 100vw, 318px" /><p id="caption-attachment-588253" class="wp-caption-text">Screenshot/Instagram Stories</p></div>
<p>Since the NCAA championships, one of Thomas&#8217; own teammates at University of Pennsylvania has <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/sports/lia-thomas-upenn-teammate-speaks-says-university-wanted-us-be-quiet" target="_blank" rel="noopener">spoken out</a>, saying that she felt bullied into accepting the presence of a biological male on the team, in the locker room, and in competition.</p>
<p>Paula Scanlan <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/clips/former-teammate-of-lia-thomas-comes-forward" target="_blank" rel="noopener">spoke with The Daily Wire host Matt Walsh</a> about her experience, saying that she was ready to join outspoken Lia Thomas critic Riley Gaines in doing whatever she could to protect women&#8217;s sports.</p>
<p>Scanlan recalled a meeting during which the girls on the team were informed that Thomas&#8217; spot on the team was &#8220;non-negotiable&#8221; and they were warned that action could be taken against them if they were to speak with media about the situation.</p>
<p>&#8220;After that meeting, they really scared us. It was scary, and I was petrified. I went home that night and I called my brother and said, ‘Can I even talk about this with you? Is there something wrong with me for thinking that this is wrong?’&#8221; Scanlan said.</p>
<p>&#8220;It worked. The university wanted us to be quiet, and they did it in a very effective way. They continued to tell us that our opinions were wrong and that if we had an issue with it, we were the problem. And it’s frightening, and your future job is on the line. And after that point, no one would talk about it anymore,&#8221; Scanlan continued. &#8220;They effectively silenced us even within talking to each other.&#8221;</p>


NCAA SWIMMING: MAR 17 Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships

Trans-Identifying Swimmer Shows True Colors In Social Media Post

Antifa

Transgender

U.S.

<p style="font-weight: 400;">Twelve-time NCAA All-American swimmer Riley Gaines, an outspoken advocate for keeping women’s sports exclusive to women, ripped into White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre for disputing the idea that males competing in women’s sports could be dangerous for women.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">A reporter asked Jean-Pierre what the Biden administration would say to parents worried that their daughter might have to compete against men and be unsafe as a result.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“What you’re alluding to is basically saying that transgender kids are dangerous,” Jean Pierre stated. “That is dangerous. That is a dangerous thing to say.”</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“When they say ‘inclusion,’ just know they really mean ‘exclusion,’” Gaines fired. “The message this sends to ALL women is that our safety doesn&#8217;t matter. Nor does our privacy, our fairness, our equal opportunities, or our dignity. The misogyny is slapping us across the face.”</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">When they say &quot;inclusion&quot;, just know they really mean &quot;exclusion&quot;. </p>
<p>The message this sends to ALL women is that our safety doesn&#39;t matter. Nor does our privacy, our fairness, our equal opportunities, or our dignity. The misogyny is slapping us across the face. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SaveWomensSports?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SaveWomensSports</a> <a href="https://t.co/DYqZDiQF7p">https://t.co/DYqZDiQF7p</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) <a href="https://twitter.com/Riley_Gaines_/status/1668795620910407680?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 14, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">In February, Gaines, an All-American at the University of Kentucky and a five-time Southeastern Conference champion, called for the NCAA to have separate facilities for transgender-identifying competitors. She said seeing the male genitalia of Lia Thomas, who swam for the University of Pennsylvania, in the locker room left her feeling violated.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“There’s a 6’4” biological man dropping his pants and watching us undress, and we were exposed to male genitalia,” she recalled. “Not even probably a year, two years ago, this would have been considered some form of sexual assault, voyeurism. But now, not even are they just allowing it to happen, it’s almost as if these large organizations are encouraging it to happen.”</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">Gaines has continued to advocate for women following the end of her collegiate swimming career.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“I’m speaking for every female athlete, not just myself,” Gaines said <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/riley-gaines-skewers-lia-thomas-over-trans-swimmers-latest-heartbreaking-claim" target="_blank" rel="noopener">during an interview</a> with British broadcaster Piers Morgan in April. “I’m done competing. This isn’t about me. But I know what’s at stake if someone doesn’t use their voice. I have a younger sister. I just got married. I can only hope one day that I have a daughter and I can’t imagine being in this position and not fighting for them.”</p>
<p>The topic has bled into popular culture, with many popular commentators making their position on the issue clear. In March, podcaster Joe Rogan <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/sports/joe-rogan-goes-off-transgender-female-athletes-competing-against-biological-women-f-ing-maddening" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sounded off</a> on transgender athletes.</p>
<p>“It’s why we have weight classes. It’s why we should have the difference between females and males competing against each other, which is why this trans athlete thing f***ing blows my mind – how many people go along with this?” Rogan said. “It just blows my mind.”</p>


‘Slapping Us Across The Face’: Riley Gaines Rips Jean-Pierre For Ignoring Parents Worried About Women’s Sports

Joe Rogan

Karine Jean-Pierre

Riley Gaines

White House

<p>More Americans now than in 2021 say <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/gender" target="_blank" rel="noopener">trans-identifying</a> athletes should have to compete on the team that matches their biological sex, a new Gallup poll shows.</p>
<p>About 69% of Americans say trans-identifying athletes should only be allowed to compete on sports teams that match their biological sex, the Gallup <a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/507023/say-birth-gender-dictate-sports-participation.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener">poll</a>, released Monday, found.</p>
<p>In 2021, only 62% of Americans felt that trans-identifying athletes should compete on the team of their biological sex.</p>
<p>Only just over a quarter of Americans, 26%, now support athletes playing on the team of their professed gender identity. Two years ago, that number was over a third of Americans, 34%.</p>
<p>In practice, biological males competing on women&#8217;s sports teams has resulted in males winning <a href="https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/33529775/amid-protests-pennsylvania-swimmer-lia-thomas-becomes-first-known-transgender-athlete-win-division-national-championship" target="_blank" rel="noopener">championship</a> titles over their female competitors.</p>
<p>In 2019, three Connecticut high school girls who ran track <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/connecticut-transgender-athletes-face-federal-discrimination-complaint-from-females-over-title-ix-violations/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">filed</a> a federal discrimination lawsuit claiming the state&#8217;s policy on trans-identifying athletes has cost them first place spots and potentially college scholarships. The three track athletes have faced legal setbacks, but they are <a href="https://www.ctinsider.com/connecticut/article/court-hearing-ct-athletes-appeal-agaist-ciac-18137970.php" target="_blank" rel="noopener">still fighting</a> in federal court.</p>
<p>Trans-identifying college swimmer Lia Thomas competed on the men’s team at the University of Pennsylvania before declaring himself transgender in 2019 and starting testosterone blockers and estrogen. In 2021, Thomas competed on the women’s team, sparking a national debate. In March 2022, Thomas won the NCAA Division I national championship after winning the women’s 500-yard freestyle event.</p>
<p>Interestingly, the dip in Americans who say trans-identifying athletes should get to compete on the team matching their gender identity comes at the same time more people say they know a trans-identifying person personally, according to the Gallup poll.</p>
<p><b><a href="https://onelink.to/dwapp" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" aria-describedby="sk-tooltip-9096" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://onelink.to/dwapp&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1686769858594000&amp;usg=AOvVaw29MU9w81PAp3j3uHg4Fp5m">CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP</a></b></p>
<p>About 39% of Americans say they know someone personally who says they are transgender, up from 31% in 2021.</p>
<p>A huge majority of Republicans, 93%, are opposed to letting a trans-identifying athlete choose which team to play on, male or female. Democrats are split on the issue, with 48% supportive, and 47% against trans-identifying athletes playing on the team of their gender identity. In 2021, Democrats had a more defined majority, 55%, who were supportive. A bigger majority of independents are opposed this year, 67%.</p>
<p>The poll also found that a larger share of Americans, 55%, say it is morally wrong to change one&#8217;s gender — up from 51% in 2021.</p>
<p>Over the last two years, conservatives have sounded the alarm on both biological males in women&#8217;s sports and medical procedures being performed on trans-identifying children.</p>
<p>Minors who say they identify as a new gender can obtain puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries as part of their gender transition. Hundreds of teen girls in the U.S., some as young as 12, <a href="https://www.medpagetoday.com/pediatrics/generalpediatrics/101252?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2022-10-17&amp;eun=g394940d0r&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=Daily%20Headlines%20Evening%202022-10-17&amp;utm_term=NL_Daily_DHE_dual-gmail-definition" target="_blank" rel="noopener">have gotten</a> elective, gender-related double mastectomies to remove their healthy breasts over the last few years. Meanwhile, it is more popular than ever for youth to adopt new gender identities. An estimated 300,000 minors aged 13 to 17 <a href="https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/press/transgender-estimate-press-release/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">identified</a> as transgender as of last year.</p>
<p>The poll results are from Gallup&#8217;s annual Values and Beliefs survey, which was conducted from May 1 to 24.</p>


More Americans Now Say Trans Athletes Should Compete On Team Of Biological Sex: Gallup Poll

Gallup

Gender

Sports

<p>A young woman who attended the University of Pennsylvania publicly shared for the first time her story about participating on the same team as <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/transgender" target="_blank" rel="noopener">transgender</a> swimmer <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/lia-thomas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lia Thomas</a>.</p>
<p>Paula Scanlan, who was on <a href="https://pennathletics.com/sports/womens-swimming-and-diving/roster/paula-scanlan/19677" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the school&#8217;s</a> Women&#8217;s Swimming and Diving Roster, told The Daily Wire&#8217;s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/author/matt-walsh" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Matt Walsh</a> that she now wants to join former University of Kentucky swimming star Riley Gaines in &#8220;fighting for women and girls across the country.&#8221;</p>
<p>Walsh posted the video of their discussion to Twitter on Monday and noted that Scanlan previously appeared anonymously in his hit documentary <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/videos/what-is-a-woman" target="_blank" rel="noopener">&#8220;What Is A Woman?&#8221;</a> that was released last year.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">A teammate of Lia Thomas appeared in What Is A Woman anonymously. A few days ago she came to us and said she is ready to come out publicly and tell her story. I had a longer conversation with Paula where she revealed a number of details that weren&#39;t covered in the film. Watch: <a href="https://t.co/wlknGmslJC">pic.twitter.com/wlknGmslJC</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog/status/1665860950409244673?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 5, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>&#8220;A few days ago she came to us and said she is ready to come out publicly and tell her story,&#8221; Walsh said in a tweet. &#8220;I had a longer conversation with Paula where she revealed a number of details that weren&#8217;t covered in the film.&#8221;</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Now that you’ve seen <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MattWalshBlog</a>&#39;s <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WhatIsAWoman?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WhatIsAWoman</a>, you won’t want to miss out on the 1-year reunion featuring the heroes from the documentary. Watch here: <a href="https://t.co/ZHKWvCd7PN">pic.twitter.com/ZHKWvCd7PN</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/1665814144321310721?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 5, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>Thomas, a male who <a href="https://www.si.com/college/2022/05/31/former-penn-swimmer-lia-thomas-didnt-transition-competitive-advantage" target="_blank" rel="noopener">began hormone replacement therapy</a> in May 2019, switched from University of Pennsylvania’s men’s team to the women’s squad in 2021 after identifying as a female and won a NCAA Division I national championship in the 500-yard freestyle.</p>
<p>The story of Thomas has been at the forefront of a national conversation about female athletes contending with the prospect of being at an unfair disadvantage in sports and uncomfortable situations in which females have to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/lia-thomas-teammate-locker-room-definitely-awkward-because-thomas-male-genitalia-exposed" target="_blank" rel="noopener">share a locker room</a> with someone who is a biological male but identifying as a woman.</p>
<p>Gaines, who raced against Thomas, has emerged as an activist who champions female athletes after watching them lose out on opportunities because they were &#8220;displaced&#8221; by a male competitor.</p>
<p>“I’m speaking for every female athlete, not just myself,” Gaines <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/riley-gaines-skewers-lia-thomas-over-trans-swimmers-latest-heartbreaking-claim" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/riley-gaines-skewers-lia-thomas-over-trans-swimmers-latest-heartbreaking-claim" target="_blank" rel="noopener">during an interview</a> with British broadcaster Piers Morgan in April. &#8220;I’m done competing. This isn’t about me. But I know what’s at stake if someone doesn’t use their voice. I have a younger sister. I just got married. I can only hope one day that I have a daughter and I can’t imagine being in this position and not fighting for them.”</p>


Paula Scanlan

‘Fighting For Women’: Lia Thomas Teammate Tells Her Story To Matt Walsh

'Fighting For Women': Lia Thomas Teammate Tells Her Story To Matt Walsh

<p><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/womens-swimsuits-arent-accessorized-with-a-bulge-riley-gaines-slams-adidas-swimwear-line-modeled-by-male" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Riley Gaines</a> shared text messages she&#8217;s gotten from female athletes in California who &#8220;feel helpless&#8221; competing against trans-identifying males in their sport, track and field.</p>
<p>The former swimming champion — who was deprived of an NCAA award by trans-identifying male swimmer Lia Thomas — said she&#8217;s heard from girls who were beaten by a trans-identifying male runner who took first place in a female sectional <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/all-of-a-sudden-he-blew-past-the-girls-angry-parent-of-girl-runner-who-lost-to-boy-speaks-out?spot_im_redirect_source=pitc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Meet of Champions</a> and is now headed to the state championships.</p>
<p>&#8220;Just a few of the many messages (I&#8217;ve) received from the girls + their parents in CA whose sport (Track and Field) is being infiltrated with mediocre men,&#8221; Gaines <a href="https://twitter.com/Riley_Gaines_/status/1661701667211948032?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tweeted</a> on Thursday.</p>
<p>&#8220;They feel helpless,&#8221; she added. &#8220;How can you read these and think what&#8217;s happening is okay? (It&#8217;s) discrimination against women and bullying at its finest.&#8221;</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Just a few of the many messages Ive received from the girls + their parents in CA whose sport (T&amp;F) is being infiltrated with mediocre men. They feel helpless. How can you read these and think what&#39;s happening is okay?  Its discrimination against women and bullying at its finest. <a href="https://t.co/pF8iUECtpx">pic.twitter.com/pF8iUECtpx</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) <a href="https://twitter.com/Riley_Gaines_/status/1661701667211948032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 25, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>One message from a female athlete called Gaines a &#8220;huge inspiration&#8221; and said &#8220;I didn&#8217;t qualify for XC [Cross Country] state because a trans[identifying male] took my spot. It&#8217;s my senior year in high school I&#8217;ll never get that chance again. Thank you for what you are doing.&#8221;</p>
<p>Another wrote, &#8220;The same biological male who I raced in XC[Cross Country] I also raced in track. And it all just feel unfair. I have absolutely no power to do anything. But I am grateful that the House tried to pass a bill to change things.&#8221;</p>
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<p>One person messaged Gaines that their daughter is &#8220;getting ready to run in the CA track state high school championships&#8221; and that there were &#8220;2 [males] taking the girls spots. What can we do? It&#8217;s not my daughters race but I&#8217;m sure it&#8217;s coming next. I feel so powerless to stop this. Can we fight this?&#8221;</p>
<p>During a recent event at San Francisco State University, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/sick-and-infuriating-megyn-kelly-slams-insane-lunatics-who-attacked-riley-gaines" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gaines</a> was verbally and physically assaulted by trans activists when she was on a campus to speak about the discrimination women are facing in their female sports.</p>
<p><strong>Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/womens-swimsuits-arent-accessorized-with-a-bulge-riley-gaines-slams-adidas-swimwear-line-modeled-by-male">&#8216;Women&#8217;s Swimsuits Aren&#8217;t Accessorized With A Bulge&#8217;: Riley Gaines Slams Adidas Swimsuit Modeled By Male</a></strong></p>


Photo courtesy of Riley Gaines

Riley Gaines Shares Messages She’s Gotten From Female Athletes Competing Against Trans-Identifying Males

Riley Gaines Shares Texts She’s Gotten From Female Athletes Who Lost To Trans-Identifying Male

California

Celebrities

Social Issues

Target

<p>Former ESPN reporter Charly Arnolt slammed her former employer, WNBA player <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/kjp-gushes-over-griners-release-an-important-role-model-for-lgbtqi-americans-and-women-of-color" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brittney Griner</a>, transgender swimmer Lia Thomas, and retired professional soccer player <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/riley-gaines-rips-megan-rapinoe-for-attacking-bill-protecting-womens-sports" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Megan Rapinoe</a> during a recent interview.</p>
<p>The 35-year-old sports broadcaster and TV personality spoke <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-12089535/Lia-Thomas-biggest-bigot-Brittney-Griner-puppet-Biden-Administration.html">exclusively</a> to the Daily Mail, saying for five years she couldn&#8217;t be her true self while working for the sports television network, and she&#8217;s done holding back, offering opinions on several controversial athletes.</p>
<p>Arnolt criticized Griner, who spent nearly a year detained in Russia, for saying it was a &#8220;crime&#8221; not to allow biological men to compete in women&#8217;s sports.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">EXCLUSIVE: &#39;Brittney Griner is a PUPPET for the Biden Administration, Lia Thomas is a bigot,&#39; says Charly Arnolt <a href="https://t.co/kzo9BmybwF">https://t.co/kzo9BmybwF</a> <a href="https://t.co/3GmE62DKpn">pic.twitter.com/3GmE62DKpn</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) <a href="https://twitter.com/MailOnline/status/1660630858015948801?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 22, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
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<p>&#8220;Brittney Griner should be very thankful that she wouldn&#8217;t have had that obstacle leading up to this point because she might not be playing in the WNBA if she would have,&#8221; said Arnolt.</p>
<p>&#8220;I also think that just calling it a crime is taking it one step further, and that&#8217;s the scary part, is now it&#8217;s not just saying, &#8216;Oh, this is wrong,&#8217; we&#8217;re criminalizing,&#8221; she added. &#8220;It&#8217;s very much the Left&#8217;s disposition to take dissenting viewpoints and criminalize them.&#8221;</p>
<p>Arnolt went on to describe Thomas, a biological male who identifies as transgender and competed on the University of Pennsylvania&#8217;s women&#8217;s swim team, as the &#8220;biggest bigot that I have encountered in recent times because [Thomas] is forcing [the swimmer&#8217;s] own beliefs onto other people and saying that if you don&#8217;t believe in this, then you&#8217;re a hateful person.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;You [Thomas] were a mediocre athlete in terms of male competition, and then you decided that you wanted to jump up the ladder and enter into the women&#8217;s competition,&#8221; she added. &#8220;You are built differently than a woman.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;Anyone who tries to make the argument that there is a gender spectrum, you can believe whatever you want, but science will tell you, the DNA will tell you, there was a man and there was a woman,&#8221; Arnolt continued. &#8220;I don&#8217;t care how you want to identify; at ground zero, that&#8217;s who you are. I find it offensive as a woman when a man decides that just because they have decided to live their life and identify differently, that now they can enter into a space that belongs to women that they have fought so hard for and just completely obliterate the success and opportunities that they should have.&#8221;</p>
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<p>The broadcaster felt similar about Rapinoe, who she blasted for supporting the rights of biological males who identify as transgender to participate in women&#8217;s sports.</p>
<p>&#8220;Suddenly she&#8217;s turning around after she retires from playing for the national team and says, &#8216;Yeah, I totally I totally believe that males should be able to play with women,'&#8221; the sports reporter said of Rapinoe.</p>
<p>&#8220;She&#8217;s promoted equality and women&#8217;s rights and the ability to be able to share in their success, that is almost completely the opposite to what she&#8217;s put forth,&#8221; Arnolt added.</p>


Charly Arnolt-1

Former ESPN Reporter Slams Network, Brittney Griner, Lia Thomas, And Megan Rapinoe

Brittney Griner

Entertainment

ESPN

Joe Biden

Megan Rapinoe

<p>Swimming champion <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/riley-gaines-skewers-lia-thomas-over-trans-swimmers-latest-heartbreaking-claim" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Riley Gaines</a> — who was deprived of an NCAA award by trans-identifying swimmer Lia Thomas — slammed Adidas after it used male models to promote a women&#8217;s swimsuit.</p>
<p>The former college swimmer responded on Wednesday to a tweet about the brand&#8217;s new &#8220;Pride Swimsuit&#8221; with a headline that read, &#8220;The new Adidas Women&#8217;s Swimwear Range modeled by…men.&#8221; It included images of men wearing women&#8217;s one-piece swimsuits.</p>
<p>&#8220;I don&#8217;t understand why companies are voluntarily doing this to themselves,&#8221; Gaines <a href="https://twitter.com/Riley_Gaines_/status/1658861624768225280?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tweeted</a>. &#8220;They could have at least said the suit is &#8216;unisex,&#8217; but they didn&#8217;t because it&#8217;s about erasing women. Ever wondered why we hardly see this go the other way? Women&#8217;s swimsuits aren&#8217;t accessorized with a bulge.&#8221;</p>
<p>Gaines’ post received hundreds of comments, with many agreeing that the move by the sports brand was just the latest example of women &#8220;being erased,&#8221; calling it &#8220;sickening.&#8221;</p>
<p>Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) tweeted, &#8220;I&#8217;m old enough to remember when women actually modeled women&#8217;s bathing suits, not men.&#8221;</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">I&#39;m old enough to remember when women actually modeled women&#39;s bathing suits, not men. 🙃 <a href="https://t.co/kOvXvmDzHt">https://t.co/kOvXvmDzHt</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Rep. Nancy Mace (@RepNancyMace) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepNancyMace/status/1658877270138683415?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 17, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
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<p>While another person wrote, &#8220;Don&#8217;t worry, when the cabal collapses and they lose all their money, ESG will cease to exist. Once that&#8217;s gone, these woke companies will revert back to normal and market to their actual base. Wokeness is only backed by money, it&#8217;s not organic.&#8221;</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Don&#39;t worry, when the cabal collapses and they lose all their money, ESG will cease to exist. Once that&#39;s gone, these woke companies will revert back to normal and market to their actual base. Wokeness is only backed by money, it&#39;s not organic. <a href="https://t.co/2r2awb27yP">https://t.co/2r2awb27yP</a></p>
<p>&mdash; McKaylaRose (@McKaylaRoseRed) <a href="https://twitter.com/McKaylaRoseRed/status/1658856190120476672?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 17, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
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<p>A message on the Adidas <a href="https://www.adidas.com/us/pride-swimsuit/IA3339.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">website</a> said the Adidas x Rich Mnisi Pride collection of swimsuits was created by South African designer Rich Mnisi. It is described as &#8220;a celebration of self-expression, imagination and the unwavering belief that love unites, the collaboration explores fluidity, color and patterns.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;This partnership is one part of our effort to honor the LGBTQIA+ community alongside our Global Purpose partner Athlete Ally,&#8221; the statement added. &#8220;We&#8217;re all unique, but we&#8217;re all connected by love. That&#8217;s the message of this adidas swimsuit, designed in collaboration with Rich Mnisi.&#8221;</p>
<p>The athletic brand follows other big name companies like <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bud-light-sales-plummet-for-fifth-straight-week-as-customers-react-against-mulvaney-partnership" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Anheuser-Busch</a>, Maybelline, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/target-releases-latest-pride-collection-complete-with-kids-books-and-rainbow-items-for-babies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Target</a>, and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fing-sports-bras-megyn-kelly-slams-nikes-partnership-with-non-breasted-dylan-mulvaney" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nike</a> who have chosen to promote woke ideology regardless of their customer base and bottom line.</p>
<p><em>A previous version of this story said male models advertised a women&#8217;s swimwear line; it was a single swimsuit. </em></p>
<p><strong>Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/this-s-has-to-stop-comedian-rob-schneider-says-stop-making-girls-compete-against-trans-identifying-men" target="_blank" rel="noopener">&#8216;This S*** Has To Stop&#8217;: Comedian Rob Schneider Says Stop Making Girls Compete Against Trans-Identifying Men</a></strong></p>


‘Women’s Swimsuits Aren’t Accessorized With A Bulge’: Riley Gaines Slams Adidas Swimsuit Modeled By Male

'Women’s Swimsuits Aren't Accessorized With A Bulge': Riley Gaines Slams Adidas Swimsuit Modeled By Male

<p>Riley Gaines had big plans for her life: she was going to graduate from University of Kentucky, go on to dental school, become an endodontist, and ride off into the sunset with her husband and dog by her side.</p>
<p>All that changed when, at the last meet of an illustrious collegiate swimming career, she came face to face with a challenge that she knew was going to impact young female athletes for years to come unless someone — someone like her — stood up and said &#8220;no more.&#8221;</p>
<p>Gaines never planned a life of activism. She told The Daily Wire that her plan was to go to dental school and study endodontics — laughing as she admitted she would be the one responsible for performing universally dreaded procedures like root canals.</p>
<p>“But I quickly learned that the fastest way to make God laugh was to make plans for myself,” she said.</p>
<div id="attachment_547493" style="width: 478px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-547493" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-547493 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.16-AM-468x576.jpg" alt="Photo courtesy of Riley Gaines" width="468" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.16-AM-468x576.jpg 468w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.16-AM-244x300.jpg 244w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.16-AM.jpg 757w" sizes="(max-width: 468px) 100vw, 468px" /><p id="caption-attachment-547493" class="wp-caption-text">Photo courtesy of Riley Gaines</p></div>
<p>Gaines came from a family of athletes — a father who played football professionally, a brother who played college football, and a sister who is a gymnast — so it was no surprise that she made a name for herself as an athlete as well. The pool was where she shined, and after years of training, she was ready to compete in the NCAA finals — wearing blue for University of Kentucky.</p>
<div id="attachment_547495" style="width: 893px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-547495" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-547495 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.32-AM-883x576.jpg" alt="Photo courtesy of Riley Gaines" width="883" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.32-AM-883x576.jpg 883w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.32-AM-300x196.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.32-AM-768x501.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.32-AM-1536x1001.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.32-AM.jpg 1589w" sizes="(max-width: 883px) 100vw, 883px" /><p id="caption-attachment-547495" class="wp-caption-text">Photo courtesy of Riley Gaines</p></div>
<p>It was the final meet of her collegiate career, and even though she had been warned ahead of time that she would be competing against a biological male — trans-identifying University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas — she and the other women competing had apparently not been warned that Thomas would be granted full access to the women’s facilities during the competition.</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/riley-gaines-save-women-s-sports8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: RILEY GAINES&#8217; INTERVIEW ON CRAIN &amp; COMPANY</a></strong></p>
<p>Thomas, who was still biologically male in every way, was allowed access to the locker room while female competitors stripped down and struggled into their skintight racing suits. The women, Gaines said, felt uncomfortable and intimidated — but many were afraid to speak up for fear of backlash.</p>
<p>In the pool, Thomas tied Gaines for fifth place in the 200 freestyle — but when the time came for photos of the winners, the NCAA leadership insisted on having Thomas hold up the trophy for publicity purposes.</p>
<p>Gaines recalled the words of the NCAA representative, who told her, “Hey, I just want to let you know, we only have one fifth place trophy, so yours will be coming in the mail. We went ahead and gave the fifth place trophy to Lia, but you can pose on the podium with the sixth place trophy.”</p>
<p>Gaines was incensed, calling the overall experience “disheartening” not because she didn’t get the trophy, but because she saw what the NCAA had been willing to do for the right kind of photo opportunity.</p>
<div id="attachment_547491" style="width: 671px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-547491" decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-547491 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.48-AM-661x576.jpg" alt="Photo courtesy of Riley Gaines" width="661" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.48-AM-661x576.jpg 661w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.48-AM-300x262.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.48-AM-768x669.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-09-at-9.36.48-AM.jpg 881w" sizes="(max-width: 661px) 100vw, 661px" /><p id="caption-attachment-547491" class="wp-caption-text">Photo courtesy of Riley Gaines</p></div>
<p>That, she told The Daily Wire, is what told her that she might need to change her plans.</p>
<p>“I’m done competing, this is not about me. I can’t imagine my sister having to share her locker room with a man. I hope to one day have a daughter, and I can’t imagine her not having the same opportunities that I had up until my very last swim meets,” Gaines said.</p>
<p>Noting that she’s often then accused of not wanting trans-identifying students to have opportunities in sports, she said nothing could be further from the truth. She just believes that sports, on a fundamental level, have to be fair to have value — and that allowing biological males to compete with women is allowing certain people an unfair advantage.</p>
<p>“Involvement in sports is important, especially for girls, but for everyone. It fosters growth, leadership skills, and resiliency, and it teaches kids how to take constructive criticism and use it to make themselves better,” Gaines explained, adding, “I don’t think anyone should be denied access to this, that’s a silly accusation, I’m often accused of this. But it has to be fair.”</p>
<p>Gaines quickly realized that dental school would always be there, but the need for a loud voice defending women in sports was both immediate and urgent. Reflecting on the current state of affairs — the fact that biological males have been allowed into women&#8217;s spaces, often based on little more than self-identifying as transgender — Gaines said people have to realize it is not just about sports.</p>
<p>&#8220;This is bigger than just sports — the changing of the language, words that apply to women, the silencing of women’s voices. It may have to get worse before it gets better,&#8221; she said — but she added that she believes most people don&#8217;t align with the most radical activists. &#8220;I think the overwhelming majority are baffled by this that we can’t define woman.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;When you see the bigger picture — looking at how universities, corporations, even political officials, are denying objective truth — we’re living in a George Orwell dystopian novel where they’re telling us to say that 2+2=5 and we all know it’s not 5,&#8221; she continued. &#8220;It feels as if it’s a cult — it must consume your every waking thought and action. But it&#8217;s important for people to understand that your gender identity is not all you are.&#8221;</p>
<p>For now, Gaines says, she&#8217;s going to fight. &#8220;Now I boycott,&#8221; she said with a laugh. &#8220;My husband gets so sick of it, there are companies that I won’t go into. I have always been strong-willed but now I stand stronger than I did before.&#8221;</p>
<p>She attributed her ability to stand strong to the support system around her and the lessons she learned from her own involvement in elite competition. &#8220;My wheels are always turning,&#8221; she said. &#8220;I find myself constantly questioning everything.&#8221;</p>
<p>Gaines concluded with her own advice to young girls who were thinking about competing or who were already involved, saying, &#8220;Do not get discouraged, do not cave. It breaks my heart to have parents tell me that their middle school and high school-aged daughters don’t want to compete anymore because they either have direct experience [competing against biological males] or because they’re afraid it might happen.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;To parents, I’d say protect your daughters,&#8221; she added. &#8220;And teach your sons masculinity. Teach them masculinity because then they will want to protect your daughters as well.&#8221;</p>


‘I Was Ready To Go To Dental School’: Riley Gaines Became An Activist By Accident — But She’s Not Backing Down

'I Was Ready To Go To Dental School': Riley Gaines Became An Activist By Accident — But She's Not Backing Down

Activists

Readers Pass

<p style="font-weight: 400;">After former University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas, who claims to be a woman, suggested that women athletes who criticize Thomas for competing in women’s sports are “transphobic” but too scared to say so, Fox News’ Greg Gutfeld ripped Thomas for having the nerve to tell women how to behave.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">Thomas made the comments — which included the charge that seeing men as men and women as women was derived from “patriarchal ideas” — while <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Crd1_kAJLRL/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=embed_video_watch_again" target="_blank" rel="noopener">speaking</a> to former NCAA swimmer Schuyler Bailar, who claims to be a man, on Bailar’s podcast. Asked about a letter sent by Thomas’ female teammates to the NCAA, warning against its rules permitting Thomas to participate in women’s sports, Thomas responded, “They&#8217;re using the guise of feminism to sort of push transphobic beliefs. I think a lot of people in that camp sort of carry an implicit bias against trans people, but don’t want to, I guess, fully manifest or speak that out. And so they try to just play it off as this sort of half-support.”</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“First, I gotta give the swimmer some credit. Lia’s got some serious balls,” Gutfeld mocked. “I mean, to tell feminists how to be a feminist, you gotta say that’s pretty gutsy.”</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“Instinctively almost biologically, human beings do not like line cutters” he asserted. “Men who identify as women in sport, and they win a lot, feels like you’re cutting in line.”</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“The fact is no one really cares about adults getting sex changes. You want to change your sex, if your family’s okay with it, we don’t care. Have fun. Do whatever you want. But when you do it mysteriously right before you start engaging in female sports or it involves children, it sets off an alarm, and you immediately get the feeling, no, this isn’t fair,” he declared.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“The thing that kind of bugs me, we’ve shifted the world so that it’s about everybody’s personal happiness, like you’re infringing on Lia Thomas’ happiness if you say this is wrong, but what about the happiness of all the other people who she beats, or he beats? Whatever, I don’t care about the pronouns. Their happiness means more &#8230; because they spent years practicing, they’ve put in the hours, they’re winners, and now they’ve gotta look and go, ‘Well, not winning anymore,’” he concluded.</p>
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<p style="font-weight: 400;"><strong>Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/lia-thomas-accuses-female-critics-of-being-afraid-to-express-their-transphobic-beliefs?utm_source=partner&amp;utm_campaign=conservnewsd">Lia Thomas Accuses Female Critics Of Being Afraid To Express Their ‘Transphobic Beliefs’</a></strong></p>
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<video class="wp-video-shortcode" id="video-540139-1" width="720" height="406" preload="metadata" controls="controls"><source type="video/mp4" src="https://dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/2023-04-27-Grabien-Fox_News_Channel_28FNC29-The_Five-Jessica_Tarlov-1903121-1.mp4?_=1" /><a href="https://dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/2023-04-27-Grabien-Fox_News_Channel_28FNC29-The_Five-Jessica_Tarlov-1903121-1.mp4">https://dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/2023-04-27-Grabien-Fox_News_Channel_28FNC29-The_Five-Jessica_Tarlov-1903121-1.mp4</a></video></div>

Collage Maker-28-Apr-2023-09-23-AM-2433

‘Lia’s Got Some Serious Balls’: Gutfeld Mocks Lia Thomas For Telling Women How To Behave

Gutfeld Mocks Lia Thomas For Telling Women How To Behave

Greg Gutfeld

<p>Tennis legend Martina Navratilova lashed out at biological male transgender athlete Lia Thomas after the swimmer said critics are pushing &#8220;transphobic beliefs&#8221; under the &#8220;guise of feminism.&#8221;</p>
<p>The 66-year-old responded on Twitter on Wednesday to a <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2023/04/26/lia-thomas-says-critics-using-feminism-claims-to-hide-transphobia/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TMZ</a> headline that read, &#8220;LIA THOMAS Fires Back At Critics &#8230;YOU&#8217;RE USING &#8216;FEMINISM&#8217; TO HIDE TRANSPHOBIA!!!&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;Lia Thomas Says Her Critics Using &#8216;Feminism&#8217; Claims To Hide Transphobia,&#8221; Navratilova wrote. &#8220;NEWSFLASH Lia — it&#8217;s not fair.&#8221;</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Lia Thomas Says Her Critics Using &#39;Feminism&#39; Claims To Hide Transphobia- NEWSFLASH Lia- it’s not fair. We shouldn’t have to explain it to you over and over. Also- stop explaining feminism to feminists…. <a href="https://t.co/vZxEva3rm2">https://t.co/vZxEva3rm2</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Martina Navratilova (@Martina) <a href="https://twitter.com/Martina/status/1651276033994244101?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 26, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>&#8220;We shouldn&#8217;t have to explain it to you over and over,&#8221; she added. &#8220;Also — stop explaining feminism to feminists….&#8221;</p>
<p>During the podcast, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Crd1_kAJLRL/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;ig_rid=fd899146-5ca1-411d-b798-d2a6792e4406" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Thomas</a> said, &#8220;They’re like, &#8216;Oh, we respect Lia, as a woman, as a trans woman or whatever, we respect her identity, we just don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s fair.'&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;You can&#8217;t really have that sort of half-support where you&#8217;re like, &#8216;Oh, I respect her as a woman here, but not here,'&#8221; the swimmer added. &#8220;They are using the guise of feminism to sort of push transphobic beliefs.&#8221;</p>
<p><strong>WATCH:</strong></p>
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<p>&#8220;And I think a lot of people in that camp sort of carry an implicit bias against trans people,&#8221; the swimmer continued. &#8220;But don&#8217;t want to, I guess, fully manifest or speak that out. So they try to just play it off as a sort of half support.&#8221;</p>
<p>It is not the first time the tennis legend and outspoken LGBT advocate has spoken about how unfair and &#8220;insane&#8221; it is for women to compete against male athletes in women&#8217;s sports.</p>
<p>In a lengthy op-ed for the <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/the-rules-on-trans-athletes-reward-cheats-and-punish-the-innocent-klsrq6h3x?region=global" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sunday Times of London</a>, Navratilova said regardless of a male athlete undergoing hormone treatment for a gender transition, they still have a competitive advantage.</p>
<p>&#8220;Letting men compete as women simply if they change their name and take hormones is unfair — no matter how those athletes may throw their weight around,&#8221; Navratilova wrote.</p>
<p><b data-stringify-type="bold"><a class="c-link" href="https://onelink.to/dwapp" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://onelink.to/dwapp" data-sk="tooltip_parent">CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILY WIRE APP</a></b></p>
<p>&#8220;To put the argument at its most basic: a man can decide to be female, take hormones if required by whatever sporting organization is concerned, win everything in sight and perhaps earn a small fortune, and then reverse his decision and go back to making babies if he so desires,&#8221; she <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tennis-legend-martina-navratilova-called-nazi-hank-berrien">added</a>. &#8220;… It&#8217;s insane and it&#8217;s cheating. I am happy to address a transgender woman in whatever form she prefers, but I would not be happy to compete against her. It would not be fair.&#8221;</p>
<p><strong>Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tennis-legend-martina-navratilova-says-allowing-emily-zanotti">Tennis Legend Martina Navratilova Says Allowing Trans Men To Compete Against Women Is &#8216;Insane&#8217; And &#8216;Cheating&#8217;</a></strong></p>


2021 WTA Finals – Previews

‘It’s Not Fair’: Tennis Legend Blows Up At Lia Thomas

Tennis Legend Blows Up At Lia Thomas

Martina Navratilova

Tennis

<p style="font-weight: 400;">Former University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas, who claims to be a woman, suggested that women athletes who criticize Thomas for competing in women’s sports are “transphobic” but too scared to say so.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">Thomas made the comments — which included the charge that seeing men as men and women as women was derived from “patriarchal ideas” —  while <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Crd1_kAJLRL/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=embed_video_watch_again" target="_blank" rel="noopener">speaking</a> to former NCAA swimmer Schuyler Bailar, who claims to be a man, on Bailar’s podcast.</p>
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<p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Crd1_kAJLRL/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Schuyler Bailar (@pinkmantaray)</a></p>
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<p style="font-weight: 400;">Asked about the letter sent to the NCAA, warning against its rules permitting Thomas to participate in women’s sports, Thomas responded, “They&#8217;re like: ‘Oh, we respect Lia as a woman, as a trans woman, whatever, we respect her identity, we just don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s fair.’ You can&#8217;t really have that sort of half-support, where like, I respect you as a woman here, but not here.”</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“You can&#8217;t do that; you can&#8217;t sort of break down me as a person into little pieces,” Thomas declared.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“They&#8217;re using the guise of feminism to sort of push transphobic beliefs,” Thomas insisted. “I think a lot of people in that camp sort of carry an implicit bias against trans people, but don’t want to, I guess, fully manifest or speak that out. And so they try to just play it off as this sort of half-support.”</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">“At the end of the day, everybody&#8217;s trying to — under a true feminist — is everybody trying to come together to sort of break down these patriarchal ideals of what a woman is and who can be a woman and sort of open that up to the very broad range of possibilities that there are,” Thomas concluded.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">Back in December, parents of Thomas&#8217; teammates sent a letter to the NCAA. “The precedent being set – one in which women do not have a protected and equitable space to compete – is a direct threat to female athletes in every sport,” they charged. “What are the boundaries? How is this in line with the NCAA&#8217;s commitment to providing a fair environment for student-athletes?”</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">Former University of Kentucky star swimmer Riley Gaines, who has been at the forefront of the cause for protecting women&#8217;s sports ever since she was deprived of a fifth-place medal at last year&#8217;s NCAA championships by Thomas, recently said, “I can wholeheartedly attest to the fact that around the country, female athletes who protested the inclusion of Lia Thomas in the women’s division were threatened, intimidated, and emotionally blackmailed into silence and submission.”</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;"><strong>Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/i-still-suffer-high-school-volleyball-star-spiked-in-face-by-trans-player-describes-her-horrific-injuries">&#8216;I Still Suffer&#8217;: High School Volleyball Star Spiked In Face By Trans Player Describes Her Horrific Injuries</a></strong></p>


Lia Thomas Accuses Female Critics Of Being Afraid To Express Their ‘Transphobic Beliefs’

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