Former collegiate swimmer <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/riley-gaines">Riley Gaines</a> reacted to the news that trans-identifying male swimmer Lia Thomas lost his challenge to compete in the Olympics in women’s swimming events.
In a post on Wednesday on <a href="https://x.com/Riley_Gaines_/status/1800949740739457262">X</a>, Gaines reposted a <a href="https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/news/transgender-swimmer-lia-thomas-loses-163220668.html">Yahoo Sports</a> headline that read, “Transgender swimmer Lia Thomas loses legal challenge in CAS [Court of Arbitration for Sport] ruling.” 
&#8221; The CAS panel found that &#8216;for the time being&#8217; she is not eligible to compete in elite competitions through World Aquatics or USA Swimming, so the policy does not apply to her,&#8221; the outlet reported.
&#8220;[Thomas] is currently only entitled to compete in USA Swimming events that do not qualify as &#8216;Elite Events,'&#8221; according to the arbitral award.
“Great news! Lia Thomas won&#8217;t be able to compete in women&#8217;s category at the Olympics or any other elite competition,” Gaines wrote to her one million followers. 
“He has just lost his legal battle in Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling,” she added, calling it a “victory for women and girls everywhere.”
The post has since gone viral with more than 1.3 million views at the time of this publication.
<a href="https://x.com/Riley_Gaines_/status/1800972945462002008">Gaines</a> later called on the NCAA to “strip him [Thomas]of every award, title, and record he stole from a deserving female athlete.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Great news! Lia Thomas won&#8217;t be able to compete in women&#8217;s category at the Olympics or any other elite competition.
He has just lost his legal battle in Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling.
This is a victory for women and girls everywhere<a href="https://t.co/fEZc47K0FA">https://t.co/fEZc47K0FA</a>
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) <a href="https://twitter.com/Riley_Gaines_/status/1800949740739457262?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 12, 2024</a></blockquote>
The former swimmer wasn’t the only one <a href="https://twitchy.com/artistangie/2024/06/12/lia-thomas-loses-court-battle-against-world-aquatics-n2397226">reacting</a> to the news, with many taking to social media to celebrate the decision.
“Common sense for the win,” one person wrote.
Another added, “Do I agree with biology? Yes, yes I do.”
In a statement about the decision, World Aquatics called it &#8220;a major step forward in our efforts to protect women&#8217;s sport.&#8221;
&#8220;World Aquatics is dedicated to fostering an environment that promotes fairness, respect, and equal opportunities for athletes of all genders and we reaffirm this pledge,&#8221; the statement said. &#8220;Our policies and practices are continuously evaluated to ensure they align with these core values, which led to the introduction of our open category.”
&#8220;We remain committed to working collaboratively with all stakeholders to uphold the principles of inclusivity in aquatic sports and remain confident that our gender inclusion policy represents a fair approach,” the statement concluded.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/riley-gaines-says-biden-has-abolished-title-ix-breaks-down-what-this-means-for-women">Gaines</a>, a former University of Kentucky swimmer, has become a vocal advocate for women’s rights in sports and has faced backlash for speaking out against biological males competing against females.
The former swimmer made headlines when she talked about how unfair it was having to swim against Thomas in 2022 and how uncomfortable it was changing in the locker room with Thomas.

NCAA SWIMMING: MAR 18 Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships

Riley Gaines Reacts To Lia Thomas Losing Challenge To Compete In Women’s Olympic

Lia Thomas

Olympics

Riley Gaines

Sports

transgender athlete

Trans-identifying swimmer <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/lia-thomas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lia Thomas</a> lost his legal challenge over rules that prevent transgender swimmers from competing in elite women&#8217;s races, including the Olympics.
Thomas mounted the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/lia-thomas-seeking-legal-avenues-to-overturn-regulations-on-male-swimmers-competing-with-women-has-eyes-set-on-olympics-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">legal challenge</a> against World Aquatics earlier this year, reportedly with his eyes set on competing against women in the Olympics, but in a ruling released Wednesday, the Court for Arbitration of Sport dismissed Thomas&#8217; request for arbitration, Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/sports/lia-thomas-olympics-dreams-dashed-after-legal-challenge-world-aquatics-transgender-policy-fails" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. World Aquatics, which is recognized by the International Olympic Committee, banned male swimmers from competing in women&#8217;s swimming in 2022, creating an &#8220;open&#8221; category for trans swimmers.
&#8220;The panel concludes that [Thomas] lacks standing to challenge the policy and the operational requirements in the framework of the present proceeding,&#8221; the court said.
According to the ruling, USA Swimming granted Thomas&#8217; request for &#8220;self-identity verification,&#8221; but the judges said USA Swimming had no authority to grant Thomas that request and &#8220;modify such scope of application” of the world governing body’s rules, the Associated Press <a href="https://apnews.com/article/swimming-transgender-rules-lia-thomas-8a626b5e7f7eafe5088b643c4d804c56" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
World Aquatics said the court&#8217;s decision &#8220;is a major step forward in our efforts to protect women’s sport.”
“World Aquatics is dedicated to fostering an environment that promotes fairness, respect, and equal opportunities for athletes of all genders and we reaffirm this pledge,” the governing body added. &#8220;Our policies and practices are continuously evaluated to ensure they align with these core values, which led to the introduction of our open category. We remain committed to working collaboratively with all stakeholders to uphold the principles of inclusivity in aquatic sports and remain confident that our gender inclusion policy represents a fair approach.&#8221;
Thomas, a former UPenn swimmer, was cast into the spotlight in 2022 after winning the NCAA Division 1 championship in the 500-yard freestyle. Shortly after his championship, Thomas told &#8220;Good Morning America,&#8221; &#8220;It’s been a goal of mine to swim at Olympic trials for a very long time, and I would love to see that through.&#8221;
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The court&#8217;s dismissal of Thomas&#8217; challenge comes just a few days before the U.S. Olympic swimming team trials <a href="https://www.usaswimming.org/about-usas/resources/trials" target="_blank" rel="noopener">kick off</a> in Indianapolis. The 2024 Summer Olympics begin on July 26 in Paris.

Lia Thomas Loses Legal Battle Over Rules Preventing Trans-Identifying Swimmers From Competing In Elite Women’s Races

Lia Thomas Loses Legal Battle Over Rules Preventing Trans-Identifying Swimmers From Competing In Elite Women's Races

Social Issues

Swimming

U.S.

Women's Swimming

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/riley-gaines" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Riley Gaines</a> and over a dozen other female athletes filed a lawsuit on Thursday against the NCAA over its policies that allow men to compete in women’s sports.
Gaines, a former swimmer with the University of Kentucky, and other female athletes say that the NCAA’s policies allowing men to compete in women’s sports violate their privacy and has cost them opportunities. Gaines <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/i-left-there-with-no-trophy-ncaa-female-swimmer-who-tied-for-fifth-with-trans-athlete-says-officials-put-lia-thomas-ahead-of-her" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was forced</a> to compete against Lia Thomas, a man who identifies as a woman, at the 2022 NCAA Division I Women’s Championships for swimming. Gaines was also forced to share a locker room with Thomas where he undressed in front of multiple women.
“The NCAA has simultaneously imposed a radical anti-woman agenda on college sports, reinterpreting Title IX to define women as a testosterone level, permitting men to compete on women’s teams, and destroying female safe spaces in women’s locker rooms by authorizing naked men possessing full male genitalia to disrobe in front of non-consenting college women and creating situations in which unwilling female college athletes unwittingly or reluctantly expose their naked or partially clad bodies to males, subjecting women to a loss of their constitutional right to bodily privacy,” the <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/16CIcxSu2DvL1uPYfY8DcLWy90klGRK74/view" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lawsuit</a> says.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
🚨it&#39;s official!🚨
I&#39;m suing the NCAA along with 15 other collegiate athletes who have lost out on titles, records, &amp; roster spots to men posing as women
The NCAA continues to explicitly violate the federal civil rights law of Title IX. About time someone did something about…
&mdash; Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) <a href="https://twitter.com/Riley_Gaines_/status/1768335572798456179?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 14, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, the lawsuit accuses the NCAA and several Georgia universities of violating Title IX, as well as the Equal Protection clause of the 14th Amendment. The lawsuit also accused the NCAA of attempting to chill the free speech of athletes through speech codes that might be interpreted to define any opposition to men competing in women’s sports as “transphobic.”
In addition to Gaines, the others on the lawsuit included Reka Gyorgy, Kylee Alons, Kaitlyn Wheeler, Lily Mullens, Susanna Price, Carter Satterfield, Kate Pearson, Katie Blankinship, Julianna Morrow, Ainsley Erzen, Ellie Eades, and multiple athletes who have chosen to remain anonymous. The athletes include swimmers, track athletes, and volleyball players.
The lawsuit says that the NCAA has been driven by ideology and not science with its policies regarding the participation of transgender-identifying athletes.
“The sole justification of the Association for its discriminatory Transgender Eligibility Policies, which are imposed by the NCAA upon all member colleges and universities in NCAA Divisions I, II and III, is that biological differences between males and females can allegedly be overcome by a program of testosterone suppression in males who identify as transgender,” the lawsuit says.
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The athletes argue that the NCAA has pursued radical policies at the expense of female athletes.
“What is disappointing and unlawful is that the NCAA aggressively applies its radical Transgender Eligibility Policies which diminish women’s opportunities despite the clear Title IX imperative to hold separate competitions and separate championships for women where physiological advantages of men preclude mixed (or open) competitions and despite vast scientific and experiential evidence demonstrating the NCAA’s policies harm women,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit demands that the NCAA revoke any award or record from any male who has competed as a female and reverse policies allowing males to compete in women&#8217;s sports.

Riley Gaines, Other Collegiate Athletes Sue NCAA For Allowing Men To Compete In Women’s Sports

College sports

NCAA

Transgender Athletes

Sportscaster Bob Costas chimed in regarding the trans controversy in sports, saying, “We can’t throw common sense out the window.”
Costas appeared on HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” alongside Atlantic staff writer Caitlin Flanagan. Maher spoke of the lawsuit filed by transgender University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas against World Aquatics so Thomas could compete in women&#8217;s swimming at the Summer Olympics. He asked whether permitting trans-identifying athletes to compete against women was fair.
“Without getting too deep into this, people may not realize this, the individual federations that govern these sports make up their own rules,” Costas answered. “So World Aquatics may have different rules than FIFA or the Track and Field Association. So I understand that when it comes to Olympic boxing, that federation will allow trans women to compete against biological women, at birth biological women. That seems crazy.”
“You don’t want to be called — it&#8217;s not transphobic to say &#8216;Let&#8217;s inject some common sense here,’” he continued. “A lot of this is murky. We know that some people who use this as an issue actually are hostile towards trans people, or people who after carefully considered decision at a certain point in life, decide that they&#8217;ll be happier and closer to their true selves. I think any sensitive person is aligned with that. But — Sugar Ray Leonard didn&#8217;t fight Mike Tyson. They were contemporaries. Sugar Ray was a welterweight, Mike was a heavyweight, alright? If someday the best player in the WNBA can play in the NBA, everybody would applaud. But if the worst guy at the end of the bench on the worst team in the NBA went to the WNBA and averaged 40 points a game, everybody knows that&#8217;s bulls***.”
“What’s the answer for the trans athlete? What’s the answer? A separate division?” Maher pressed.
“Well, I don’t think you want just trans athletes competing against other trans athletes; they’re going to have to codify the rules that I’m not prepared to say exactly what those rules would entail but they’ll have to codify them so you don’t have a hodge-podge,” Costas replied.
“You know these kind of extreme cases, and I hate that we have to talk about them so much because it makes it [like] we have to say things that are cruel or hurtful to some people but you know, women&#8217;s and girls’ sports, they weren&#8217;t created as separate from men&#8217;s and boys’ because of some weird gendered thing like they have to wear pink, and they have to wear blue, they&#8217;re that way because of the profound sex differences between the sexes,” Flanagan chimed in. “That&#8217;s the reason. You don&#8217;t hear about any trans male athletes on a D1 basketball team… it&#8217;s the trans women who seem to be using a natural advantage that comes from sex-linked traits, you know, we women- we can&#8217;t compete.”
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“But it might not be, at some point down the road, if it’s codified, and if you take the transition hormones and balance that out, and maybe that happens before puberty or shortly after, because even if you begin that hormone therapy, you retain some of the advantages that generally go with being a man, greater lung capacity, greater strength, etc., etc.,” Costas stated. “So they’re going to have to codify it. &#8230; We don’t want to be cruel or punitive toward someone who is trying to deal with a circumstance, but at the same time, we can’t throw common sense out the window.”
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Bill Maher asks Bob Costas what is the best answer regarding trans competing in sports. Maher asks Costas a simple question: Should trans compete in a separate division? Bob Costas: &quot;I don&#39;t think you want trans athletes competing against other trans athletes&quot; Caitlin Flanagan:… <a href="https://t.co/tBJkgcL3fH">pic.twitter.com/tBJkgcL3fH</a>
&mdash; Eric Abbenante (@EricAbbenante) <a href="https://twitter.com/EricAbbenante/status/1756182293763285032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2024</a></blockquote>
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33rd Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner To Benefit The Buoniconti Fund To Cure Paralysis – Arrivals

Bob Costas On Trans-Identifying Athletes: ‘We Can’t Throw Common Sense Out The Window’

Bill Maher

Bob Costas

Weightlifting – Commonwealth Games Day 5

Here Are The Men Who Have Dominated Women’s Sports

Golf

Powerlifting

Readers Pass

Track and Field

Transgender

Women's sports

Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL) announced a new House bill on Thursday that would bar trans-identifying men from competing in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/olympics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Olympic</a> or amateur sports.
&#8220;Today, I introduced the Protection of Women in Olympic and Amateur Sports Act to prohibit any governing body recognized by @TeamUSA from allowing biological men to participate in ANY athletic event intended for women,&#8221; Steube explained. &#8220;With groups like @USABoxing adopting insane transgender policies, this legislation would protect women and prevent delusional organizations such as @usaboxing from being recognized by the U.S. Olympic committee.&#8221;
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Today, I introduced the Protection of Women in Olympic and Amateur Sports Act to prohibit any governing body recognized by <a href="https://twitter.com/TeamUSA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TeamUSA</a> from allowing biological men to participate in ANY athletic event intended for women. 
With groups like <a href="https://twitter.com/USABoxing?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@USABoxing</a> adopting insane transgender…
&mdash; Congressman Greg Steube (@RepGregSteube) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepGregSteube/status/1753119152351428723?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Along with his post on X, the Florida Congressman shared a <a href="https://steube.house.gov/press-releases/steube-and-tuberville-introduce-legislation-to-prohibit-men-from-competing-in-usa-womens-olympic-and-amateur-sports/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a> — in which he explained that the legislation was, in part, a response to the 2024 transgender policy adopted by USA Boxing. According to that <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/01/02/news/usa-boxing-slammed-for-new-transgender-policy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">policy</a>, trans-identifying men may compete as women if they have completed sex reassignment surgery and have maintained testosterone below a certain level for three years prior to their first competition.
&#8220;Congress should not have to take legislative action to prevent biological men from hitting women for championship titles. Due to the illogical USA Boxing transgender policy, I introduced legislation to prevent organizations who choose to live in delusion from being recognized by the U.S. Olympic committee. We must combat the erasure of women’s sports by standing for truth, reality, safety, and fairness,&#8221; Steube said in the press release.
Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) — who introduced a companion bill to Steube&#8217;s in the U.S. Senate — also issued a statement on the proposed legislation.
&#8220;It is deeply disturbing to see USA Boxing change its policy to allow men to box against women. Men should not be competing in women’s sports at any level—and especially not in a sport like boxing,&#8221; Tuberville said. &#8220;Whether in little league or the Olympics, it’s unsafe, it’s unfair, and it’s just plain wrong. This bill will ensure that the Olympics are fair to American women who train their whole lives to represent our country on the world stage.&#8221;
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The bill comes just days after trans-identifying swimmer <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/lia-thomas-seeking-legal-avenues-to-overturn-regulations-on-male-swimmers-competing-with-women-has-eyes-set-on-olympics-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lia Thomas</a> began taking legal steps toward a World Aquatics rule change — which would allow trans-identifying men to compete as women in elite swimming competitions even if they had gone through male puberty.
Steube&#8217;s bill, if passed, would &#8220;prohibit any governing body recognized by the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) from allowing men to participate in any athletic event intended for females.&#8221;
It is co-sponsored by Reps Harriet Hageman (R-WY), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Randy Weber (R-TX), Jeff Duncan (R-SC), Paul Gosar (R-AZ), William Timmons (R-SC), Erin Houchin (R-IN), Neal Dunn (R-FL), Doug LaMalfa (R-CA), Brian Babin (R-TX), Andrew Clyde (R-GA),Tony Gonzalez (R-TX), Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Mike Bost (R-IL), and David Kustoff (R-TN).

Transgender rights protest

House Bill Aims To Keep Trans-Identifying Men Off U.S. Women’s Olympic Teams

House Bill Aims To Keep Trans-Identifying Men Off U.S. Women's Olympic Teams

Congress

Florida

Trans-identifying swimmer <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/lia-thomas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lia Thomas</a>, a biological male who competed on UPenn’s women’s swimming team, has mounted a legal challenge in hopes of reversing regulations placed on men competing in women’s swimming with his eyes set on the Olympics, according to a <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/swimming/2024/01/25/transgender-swimmer-lia-thomas-legal-challenge-ban/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from The Telegraph.
Thomas hired Canadian law firm Tyr and asked the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Switzerland to reverse World Aquatics&#8217; recent rule changes <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biological-males-should-not-compete-against-women-world-swim-coach-group-declares" target="_blank" rel="noopener">barring</a> trans-identifying men from competing in women’s swimming if they have gone through &#8220;any part of male puberty,&#8221; The Telegraph reported. World Aquatics, which is recognized by the International Olympic Committee, introduced the new rules regarding trans-identifying swimmers shortly after Thomas won the NCAA Division 1 championship in the 500-yard freestyle, and Thomas has not competed since 2022 when those rules were put in place.
“Trans women are particularly vulnerable in society and they suffer from higher rates of violence, abuse and harassment than cis women,” Thomas’ lawyer Carlos Sayao said. “Lia has now had the door closed to her in terms of her future ability to practice her sport and compete at the highest level.”
Sayao added that Thomas is “bringing the case for herself and other trans women to ensure that any rules for trans women’s participation in sport are fair, proportionate and grounded in human rights and in science.”
World Aquatics later said it would add an “open category” allowing trans-identifying swimmers, such as Thomas, to still compete. Only a month before the World Aquatics instituted its new rules regarding trans-identifying swimmers, Thomas told “Good Morning America” that he was hoping to try out for the U.S. Olympic team.
“It’s been a goal of mine to swim at Olympic trials for a very long time, and I would love to see that through,” he said.
Weeks before Thomas took home a Division 1 swimming title, USA Swimming passed new regulations on trans-identifying men competing in women’s swimming that critics said didn’t go far enough. The regulations passed by USA Swimming simply set up regular monitoring of testosterone levels instead of implementing any sort of outright ban on men swimming against women.
Thomas’ NCAA championship sparked nationwide backlash against men competing in women’s sports as some of Thomas’ former teammates and opponents spoke out about the humiliation of sharing a locker room and pool with a biological man. Women like <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fighting-for-women-lia-thomas-teammate-tells-her-story-to-matt-walsh" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Paula Scanlan</a>, one of Thomas’ former teammates, and Riley Gaines, an SEC-champion swimmer who <a href="https://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/news/riley-gaines-i-left-there-with-no-trophy-after-tie-with-lia-thomas-kentucky-standout-disappointed-with-ncaa/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tied</a> with Thomas in the NCAA finals, are actively speaking out in support of keeping female sports for women and girls only.
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Thomas initially brought his case before the tribunal last September, but World Aquatics asked for it to be dismissed because Thomas had not submitted himself to USA Swimming&#8217;s jurisdiction, according to The Telegraph. Thomas&#8217; case before the CAS is unlikely to be heard before USA Swimming hosts its trials for the 2024 Olympics in June.

Lia Thomas Seeking Legal Avenues To Overturn Regulations On Male Swimmers Competing With Women, Has Eyes Set On Olympics: Report

World

Fitness entrepreneur <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fitness-guru-jillian-michaels-gets-blasted-for-saying-obesity-should-not-be-glamorized" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jillian Michaels</a> bluntly spoke her mind this week about transgender athletes competing against girls and women in female sports during an interview with podcast host Tomi Lahren.
Michaels emphasized that sports are &#8220;biological&#8221; and men can simply not compete against females due to those biological differences. Safety and fairness, Michaels said, are key factors.
“Sports is biological. It just is,” she told Lahren. “And I think that you’re starting to actually see women get hurt.”
“<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/thats-fed-joe-rogan-talks-trans-swimmer-destroying-female-competitors-fallon-fox-comments" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fallon Fox</a>, for example, is an MMA fighter who is a transgender female. Beating the s*** &#8230; out of biological women,&#8221; Michaels said. &#8220;Like, this is beyond the fact of fairness. What we have trouble with as a society is &#8216;fairness,&#8217; right? Everybody wants to be &#8216;fair.&#8217; It’s not fair.&#8221;
“Here’s the problem,&#8221; she continued. &#8220;I understand it’s not fair to trans athletes, because where are they going to compete? It’s also not fair to biological female athletes. You have an issue, right? You’re not going to be able to be fair to everyone.&#8221;
As noted by Michaels, Fox, a male who identifies as transgender, made headlines when he <a href="https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/transgender-female-boxer-gives-female-opponent-concussion-breaks-her-eye-so" target="_blank" rel="noopener">competed</a> in MMA fights against women and physically hurt them. In one such fight, Fox dominated female fighter Tamikka Brents, winning by knockout in the first round. Fox broke Brents&#8217; eye socket and gave her a concussion.
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“Like Lia Thomas is 6-foot-1,&#8221; Michaels said, referring to the transgender NCAA swimmer who is male and formerly competed against men before switching to female athletics. &#8220;The percentage of biological females who are 6-foot-1 is under 1%. Lia Thomas was number 400 when she swam as a male. And number one when she swam as a female.&#8221;
Thomas made news last year when he dominated the women&#8217;s NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming Championships. NCAA swimmer-turned-advocate Riley Gaines competed in the women’s 200 freestyle at the tournament and placed fifth, tying with Thomas. Only Thomas received the fifth place trophy for the photo-op after the event, while Gaines was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/i-left-there-with-no-trophy-ncaa-female-swimmer-who-tied-for-fifth-with-trans-athlete-says-officials-put-lia-thomas-ahead-of-her" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> by the NCAA that her trophy would come in the mail.
“We’re going to systematically destroy women’s sports,&#8221; Michaels added. &#8220;I’m sorry, listen, if you want to be trans, I support you. I want you to have all the same rights that I do. But at the end of the day, someone’s going to get &#8216;effed here. And if you’re looking at, okay, you’ve got X amount of trans athletes and X amount of women, you’re not going to win this one. Right. No one’s coming out unscathed.”
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Catch <a href="https://twitter.com/JillianMichaels?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JillianMichaels</a> full answer on this TONIGHT 7pmET “Tomi Lahren is Fearless” on YouTube, X, Facebook and <a href="https://t.co/kfev7OtHAd">https://t.co/kfev7OtHAd</a> ⬇️ <a href="https://t.co/YmM86qmvZU">pic.twitter.com/YmM86qmvZU</a>
&mdash; Tomi Lahren (@TomiLahren) <a href="https://twitter.com/TomiLahren/status/1740065359087202513?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 27, 2023</a></blockquote>
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Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/a-hill-i-will-die-on-sage-steele-says-espn-told-her-not-to-talk-about-lia-thomas-she-disobeyed" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘A Hill I Will Die On’: Sage Steele Says ESPN Told Her Not To Talk About Lia Thomas. She Disobeyed.</a>

Jillian Michaels.

‘Sports Is Biological’: Fitness Guru Jillian Michaels Says Trans Athletes Will ‘Destroy’ Female Sports, Hurt Women

Fitness Guru Jillian Michaels Speaks Out About Trans Athletes

Jillian Michaels

Tomi Lahren

Ex-ESPN anchor <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/sage-steele" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sage Steele</a> says her former employer told her to stop talking about trans collegiate swimmer <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/lia-thomas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lia Thomas</a> dominating women&#8217;s swimming &#8212; a request she disobeyed.
Steele, speaking to top NCAA swimmer-turned-advocate <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/riley-gaines" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Riley Gaines</a>, said that sticking up for female athletes, such as Gaines, was a &#8220;hill&#8221; she was willing to &#8220;die on.&#8221;
&#8220;I was asked to stop tweeting about it. I was asked to stop doing anything, saying anything about it on social media because I was &#8216;offending&#8217; others at the company,&#8221; Steele recalled. &#8220;I made sure I sent off another tweet that night after I received that email. Because, no, let&#8217;s stop living in this lie.&#8221;
Steele noted that ESPN allowed other public figures at the company to speak about other issues, seemingly political issues, that had nothing to do with sports, while she was asked to stop speaking.
&#8220;I&#8217;m like, no, no, no, no, no. If we&#8217;re gonna preach on ESPN, and all of these things, then I&#8217;m gonna stand up for all these women &#8212; many of whom are afraid to do what Riley Gaines is doing, to do what I&#8217;m doing, at a much lesser level than Riley.&#8221;
&#8220;I actually said this to myself,&#8221; Steele said, &#8220;This is a hill I will die on, 100%.&#8221;
&#8220;These are facts, this is science, this is biology &#8212; come at me, tell me I&#8217;m wrong, tell me to stop supporting women,&#8221; Steele continued. &#8220;Go ahead, tell me.&#8221;
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Sage Steele says ESPN told her to stop talking about Lia Thomas &#8211; a man destroying women in the pool &#8211; but she refused to comply.
Incredible bravery from <a href="https://twitter.com/sagesteele?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SageSteele</a>. <a href="https://t.co/wh9CyHESrd">pic.twitter.com/wh9CyHESrd</a>
&mdash; David Hookstead (@dhookstead) <a href="https://twitter.com/dhookstead/status/1739976588668572098?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 27, 2023</a></blockquote>
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Last year, Gaines competed in the women’s 200 freestyle at the NCAA Division I Women’s Championships and placed fifth, tying with trans-identifying swimmer Lia Thomas, who previously competed on men’s teams. Thomas was given the only fifth place trophy for the photo-op after the event, while Gaines was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/i-left-there-with-no-trophy-ncaa-female-swimmer-who-tied-for-fifth-with-trans-athlete-says-officials-put-lia-thomas-ahead-of-her" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> by the NCAA that her trophy would come in the mail.
The ESPN standout was taken off ESPN airwaves and pulled from high-profile assignments after she criticized ESPN and The Walt Disney Co.’s COVID vaccine mandate during an appearance on Jay Cutler’s podcast, “Uncut.” Steele later sued ESPN.
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“Despite fully complying with ESPN’s policy, Sage Steele was punished for speaking her truth in violation of freedom of speech protections under Connecticut law and the U.S. constitution,” her attorney Bryan Freedman <a href="https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/2022/04/28/sage-steele-sues-espn-free-speech-covid-vaccine-mandate-remarks/9568500002/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> last year. “ESPN violated her free speech rights, retaliated against her, reprimanded her, scapegoated her, allowed the media and her peers to excoriate her and forced her to apologize simply because her personal opinions did not align with Disney’s corporate philosophy of the moment. Sage is standing up to corporate America to ensure employees don’t get their rights trampled on or their opinions silenced.”
The lawsuit was <a href="https://apnews.com/article/espn-sage-steele-covid-lawsuit-settlement-fb53a354f325c8a46c13a2ee4c15b204" target="_blank" rel="noopener">settled</a> this year, and Steele left ESPN to exercise her “first amendment rights more freely,” she wrote on social media.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-sparks-fly-between-riley-gaines-and-dem-rep-during-hearing-on-biden-proposal-to-rewrite-title-ix" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: Sparks Fly Between Riley Gaines And Dem Rep During Hearing On Biden Proposal To Rewrite Title IX</a>

Sage Steele

‘A Hill I Will Die On’: Sage Steele Says ESPN Told Her Not To Talk About Lia Thomas. She Disobeyed.

Sage Steele Says ESPN Told Her Not To Talk About Lia Thomas. She Disobeyed.

ESPN

A teenage boy who identifies as <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/transgender" target="_blank" rel="noopener">transgender</a> reportedly took first place this past weekend in the under-14 category at the 2023 Southern Region Oireachtas Irish dancing competition in Dallas, Texas, ultimately displacing a girl for a spot in the Irish Dancing World Championships.
As rules are changed to adhere to radical Left-wing gender theory, biological male athletes who identify as female have been able to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/riley-gaines-responds-to-suggestion-she-learn-to-lose-gracefully" target="_blank" rel="noopener">infiltrate</a> girls and women&#8217;s spaces and sports.
“My daughter was in absolute tears,” one mother of a girl who competed against the male <a href="https://www.dailysignal.com/2023/12/07/exclusive-parents-speak-out-after-boy-wins-girls-irish-dancing-regional-championships/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> Daily Signal reporter Mary Margaret Olohan. “She was like, ‘This is so unfair.’ I totally agree.”
“Oh, my gosh. It’s going to make me cry,” another parent said. “I never thought I was going to have to deal with this. And my heart breaks for my daughter and the other girls that are having to deal with this. They are too young to have to deal with topics that are going on in society, that are adult topics, that they don’t quite comprehend yet.”
“They just look at it as unfair,” the mother added. “And it’s really hard to explain to them what’s going on and why they have to accept it. That’s what society’s making them do. As a mom, I want to be an advocate for my daughter. But at the same time, I have to protect my family.”
According to the report, the trans-identifying dancer previously competed in boys&#8217; Irish dancing and placed 11th in the world in the Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha (CLRG) World Championships in April.
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One of the most notable examples of males invading women&#8217;s sports happened last year, when trans-identifying swimmer Lia Thomas cleaned up at the NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming Championships.
In the women’s 200 freestyle, Thomas, who previously competed on men’s teams, tied with <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-sparks-fly-between-riley-gaines-and-dem-rep-during-hearing-on-biden-proposal-to-rewrite-title-ix" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Riley Gaines</a> for fifth place. Thomas was given the only fifth place trophy for the photo-op after the event, while Gaines was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/i-left-there-with-no-trophy-ncaa-female-swimmer-who-tied-for-fifth-with-trans-athlete-says-officials-put-lia-thomas-ahead-of-her" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> by the NCAA that her trophy would come in the mail.
Gaines has since become an advocate for sports to be separate by sex, as they always have been. Testifying before Congress earlier this week, the former collegiate swimmer and other witnesses argued that refusing to separate sports by sex harms women and girls and cited studies showing the physical differences between males and females post-puberty, even after hormone treatments; argued that women and girls are losing out on scholarships and other opportunities; discussed the invasion of girls’ privacy in places like locker rooms; and noted female athletes who’ve been physically harmed by biologically male opponents.
“Not only do women have to worry about losing out on opportunities and being exploited in locker rooms, allowing men into women’s sports also puts girls at greater risk of injury,” Gaines <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/riley-gaines-responds-to-suggestion-she-learn-to-lose-gracefully" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> Congress. “In September of last year, North Carolina volleyball player Payton McNabb suffered serious injury after a trans-identified male player spiked a ball at her head, rendering her unconscious. Payton experienced extensive trauma to her head and neck and long-term concussion symptoms. Still to this day, a year and three-ish months later, she is still partially paralyzed on her right side, her vision is impaired, and she isn’t playing college sports, like she had dreamed of.”
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-sparks-fly-between-riley-gaines-and-dem-rep-during-hearing-on-biden-proposal-to-rewrite-title-ix" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: Sparks Fly Between Riley Gaines And Dem Rep During Hearing On Biden Proposal To Rewrite Title IX</a>

The dancers shoes and socks are seen on stage during the opening day of the World Irish Dancing Championships at the Waterfront Hall on April 10, 2022 in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Parents Fume After Trans-Identifying Boy Wins Regional Irish Dancing Competition, Heads To World Championship: Report

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.
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.
“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.”
“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.”
“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.”
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WOMEN&#39;S SPORTS ACTIVIST PAULA SCANLAN:
&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>
&mdash; Townhall.com (@townhallcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/townhallcom/status/1684574244653748226?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 27, 2023</a></blockquote>
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In April, Thomas suggested that women athletes who criticize Thomas for competing in women’s sports are “transphobic” but too scared to say so.
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 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.”
“You can&#8217;t do that; you can&#8217;t sort of break down me as a person into little pieces,” Thomas declared.
“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.”

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

University of Pennsylvania

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.
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;
<div id="attachment_588253" style="width: 328px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-588253" 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" />Screenshot/Instagram Stories</div>
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.
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.
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.
&#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.
&#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;

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

Trans-Identifying Swimmer Shows True Colors In Social Media Post

Antifa

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