Simone Biles v. Riley Gaines: Olympic Gymnast Apologizes to Activist Swimmer After Public Spat Over Transgender Athletes in Women’s Sports

Olympic champion Simone Biles executed a gold-medal worthy backflip on Tuesday, attempting to de-escalate her social media feud with former swimmer Riley Gaines over transgender athletes being allowed to compete in women’s sports.In what she called a “follow-up from my last tweets,” Ms. Biles apologized to Ms. Gaines for getting “personal” over her advocacy for keeping transgender people out of women’s sports. Ms. Gaines accepted the apology, but the feud between the two high-profile women is buzzing on social media.Ms. Gaines, a staunch supporter of President Trump and darling of conservative media, uses her podcast “Gaines for Girls” as a platform to advocate against the inclusion of transgender athletes in women’s sports. She openly calls out those she believes are “betraying girls” and posts pictures of transgender athletes competing in women’s sports. Ms. Gaines’s crusade began shortly after transgender swimmer Lia Thomas beat her at the 2022 NCAA Championships.Ms. Biles has largely stayed out of the political space since winning four medals — including three golds — at the Paris Olympics. She called “Riders Up” at the Kentucky Derby and generally lives the life of an Olympic legend, which is why many were stunned when she publicly stomped on Ms. Gaines in a June 6 post.“You’re truly sick, all of this campaigning because you lost a race,” Ms. Biles posted. “Straight up sore loser. You should be uplifting the trans community and perhaps finding a way to make sports inclusive, or creating a new avenue where trans feel safe in sports. Maybe a transgender category in All sports!!. But instead, you bully them.“One things for sure is no one in sports is safe with you around!!!,” Ms. Biles said.Four days after targeting Ms. Gaines, Ms. Biles offered a different spin. “I’ve always believed competitive equity and inclusivity are both essential in sport,” Ms. Biles posted on X Tuesday. “The current system doesn’t adequately balance these important principles, which often leads to frustration and heated exchanges, and it didn’t help for me to get personal with Riley, which I apologize for. These are sensitive, complicated issues that I truly don’t have the answers or solutions to, but I believe it starts with empathy and respect.”She added, “I was not advocating for policies that compromise fairness in women’s sports. My objection is to be singling out children for public scrutiny in a way that feels personal and harmful. Individual athletes — especially kids — should never be the focus of criticism of a flawed system they have no control over. I believe sports organizations have a responsibility to come up with rules supporting inclusion while maintaining fair competition. We all want a future for sport that is fair, inclusive, and respectful.”Ms. Gaines responded to Ms. Biles’s initial post by saying, “This is actually so disappointing. It’s not my job or the job of any woman to figure out how to include men in our spaces.”After Mr. Biles’s apology was posted, Ms. Gaines offered an expansive response that began, “I accept Simone’s apology for the personal attacks, including the ones where she body-shamed me. I know she knows what this feels like. She’s still the greatest female gymnast of all time.”Ms. Gaines wrote, “boys are publicly humiliating the girls,” adding, “You can’t have any empathy and compassion for girls if you’re ignoring when young men are harming or abusing them. I am not ashamed to be a voice for the voiceless.”She concluded by saying, “Little girls deserve the same shot to achieve that you had.”

Simone Biles v. Riley Gaines: Olympic Gymnast Apologizes to Activist Swimmer After Public Spat Over Transgender Athletes in Women’s Sports

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