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"No more of a reputable outlet than Lia Thomas is a woman" - Riley Gaines slams ESPN on preventing former anchor from speaking out on trans swimmer
Riley Gaines, who has been a fervent advocate of the exclusion of transgender athletes from women's sports, recently criticized ESPN after instructing the former anchor Sage Steele to refrain from speaking against Lia Thomas and transgender athletes competing against women.
Steele, who hosted the SportsCenter on ESPN, stated during the Outkick's Gaines for Girls Podcast that she and Sam Ponder, the Sunday NFL Countdown host, were asked to refrain from speaking against Thomas and the participation of trans athletes in women's sports.
Steele conveyed during the podcast that both the anchor and the host were restrained from voicing their opinions as it offended a few other ESPN employees.
"I was asked to stop tweeting about it. I was asked to stop doing anything, or saying anything about it on social media because I was offending others at the company. I made sure I sent up another tweet that night after I received that email because like, no," Steele said (at 18:30).
Gaines has vehemently stood against the inclusion of trans athletes in women's sports since she was refrained from awarding a trophy that the former NCAA swimmer and Thomas tied for during last year's NCAA Championships. Berating the American multinational sports media network, she said:
"ESPN is no more of a reputable outlet than Thomas is a woman. Men don't belong in women's sports."
In March 2023, the ESPN network released a special featuring Lia Thomas, presenting the trans swimmer's journey from being a male athlete to going through transition and breaking multiple records in the women's category.
Riley Gaines lauded Gov. Greg Abbott for barring transgender athletes from competing in women's sports at the collegiate level
Riley Gaines commended Governor Greg Abbott of Texas for refraining trans athletes from competing in collegiate women's sports.
The governor signed Senate Bill 15, also known as the Save Women's Sports Act, which bans trans athletes from competing against women athletes in colleges and universities in Texas, on June 15, 2023. The regulations of the bill came into effect in September this year.
The governor also signed a law in 2021 that barred trans athletes at the K-12 level from participating in women's sports. Additionally, the governor also restricted trans youth in Texas from seeking gender-affirming care by signing a law.
Riley Gaines applauded the governor by resharing his post, where he ensured integrity in women’s sports, saying:
"In 2021, I signed a law banning biological boys from competing in girls’ sports at the K-12 level. This year, we expanded that protection to women’s collegiate sports. Texas will safeguard the integrity of women’s sports and help female athletes achieve their dreams."
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