Ex-college swimmer Riley Gaines slammed ‘squad’ Dem a ‘misogynist’ after she accused her of engaging in ‘transphobic bigotry’ during a heated exchange at a congressional hearing on Tuesday.
Gaines, ex-Oberlin lacrosse coach Kim Russell and the Heritage Foundation’s Sarah Parshall Perry attended a hearing at the House Subcommittee for Healthcare and Financial Services regarding the impact of trans women’s inclusion in women’s sports.
It comes as the Biden Administration’s Education Department is pushing to change Title IX to support the inclusion of trans athletes in women’s sports.
During the hearing Democrat congresswoman Summer Lee told the committee that their presence meant ‘we’re likely to be forced to listen to trans-phobic bigotry.’
Former Kentucky swimmer Gaines hit back ‘if my testimony makes me transphobic…your opening monologue makes you a misogynist.’Lee quickly moved to have Gaines remarks withdrawn for ‘engaging in personalities’ rather than the substance of the debate.
‘I move to have the gentlewoman’s words taken down’ Lee appealed to the chair.
After a brief pause in proceedings Lee withdrew her point of order.
Gaines later told the hearing that in her view too many trans athletes are competing in women’s sports and that ‘Americans know intuitively that this is not fair.’
‘There are numerous documented instances of males competing not just in women’s swimming, but also in women’s track, cross country, basketball, volleyball, field hockey, and other sports at all levels of competition,’ Gaines said in her prepared statement, which was provided to media.
‘At the high school level, the participation of male athletes on women’s teams is, arguably, one of the most underreported stories in the country.’
‘Science supports that instinct,’ she continued. ‘In fact, studies consistently show male bodies have about a 10% athletic advantage over female bodies.
‘This gap is evident in almost every sport and at every level of competition. Yes, hormone therapy can narrow this gap. But it cannot close it, and studies consistently demonstrate that surgery and testosterone suppression do not reduce male athletic performance to normal female levels.’Gaines has persistently campaigned against the participation of trans women in sports since 2022, when she tied for fifth place in the 200-yard NCAA freestyle championship with University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas, a transgender woman who previously competed against men.
On Tuesday, Gaines claimed that Thomas was only ‘mediocre’ prior to transitioning.
‘Take Thomas for example,’ she said. ‘He was mediocre against the men ranking in the 400ths and 500ths nationally at best, then dominating all of the women in the entire country (by body lengths might I add) in a matter of a year.’
On Tuesday, she argued that allowing transgender women to compete against other females presents a safety hazard.
‘Injuries, of course, can and do happen even when females are playing against other females,’ said Gaines, a member of the conservative Independent Women’s Forum. ‘But allowing males to play women’s sports increases the likelihood and severity of such injuries.
‘That’s one of the reasons why—for 50 years—federal Title IX regulations have allowed schools to offer separate teams for women and men when the sports are contact sports or involve competitive skill.’
Gaines took specific aim at the Department of Education’s proposal to permit anyone who identifies as female to compete in women’s sports.
‘It is my sincere hope that members of this committee will take action to stop the Biden administration’s illegal administrative rewrite of Title IX,’ she concluded.
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