Former swimmer Riley Gaines is used to going viral online since she has taken a hard stance against transgender athletes competing against women.
Her most significant moment came this year when Simone Biles took aim at her.
Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles apologized to the former college swimmer after the two engaged in a verbal back-and-forth on X over transgender athletes. Biles apologized for not showing “empathy and respect” in a tweet where she ripped Gaines for the former swimmer’s stance on transgender athletes.
Gaines is serious when it comes to getting transgender athletes out of women’s sports.
Riley Gaines and Lia Thomas will be forever linked as the faces of the controversy surrounding transgender athletes in women’s sports.
On Tuesday, Gaines, a former University of Kentucky standout, recognized a victory for her side of the debate when the University of Pennsylvania agreed to ban transgender women from its women’s sports teams.
The Ivy League school was under fire in 2022 because of transgender swimmer Lia Thomas. She set several records while on the women’s team.
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ESPN shared this news on social media along with this headline: “The University of Pennsylvania has agreed to ban transgender women from its women’s sports teams to resolve a federal civil rights case.”
That headline didn’t sit well with Gaines.
The former NCAA swimmer and OutKick took to her X account and called out the Worldwide Leader In Sports.
“ESPN continues to be insufferable,” Riley Gaines wrote on X.
“No mention of the girls who will be rightfully awarded their NCAA & Ivy League titles? And it’s 2025. Stop calling men pretending to be women anything other than just that.”
ESPN continues to be insufferable. No mention of the girls who will be rightfully awarded their NCAA & Ivy League titles?
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) July 2, 2025
And it's 2025. Stop calling men pretending to be women anything other than just that. https://t.co/GOCEGBCUlc
Riley Gaines Continues Her Work Amid Her Pregnancy
Last month, Riley Gaines had some news to share.
Gaines announced her pregnancy on June 14, 2023. She shared the news during an event for Turning Point USA, where she displayed ultrasound images and said, “Surprise! We’re 26 weeks pregnant!”
Gaines and her husband wed in 2022.
