"Initially supported this idea" - Riley Gaines voices opinion on Simone Biles' take on transgender athletes' participation in women's sports

Riley Gaines recently gave her take on the participation of transgender athletes in women's sports, stating her agreement with Simone Biles' initial view. Biles criticized Gaines on the account of bullying transgender athletes after the former swimmer took a jab at a school transgender athlete for competing in the women's team at the State Softball Championships.

However, in her statement, Biles mentioned "creating a new avenue" for transgender athletes, calling for inclusion in sports. In a recent interview, when asked for a solution for including transgender athletes in sports, Gaines highlighted Biles' initial tweet about creating a separate category.

Gaines also reflected on the 2023 Swimming World Cup in Berlin when the association opened a new category for transgender athletes but received no participation. She also highlighted transgender swimmer Lia Thomas suing World Aquatics after the organization allowed only male-to-female transgender athletes in the women's category if they had transitioned before the age of 12.

Simone mentioned in her initial tweet that she was creating a third category on this. I'll tell you I initially supported this idea," Gaines said via Outkick on X. "But I'll tell you when I change my mind. This was done. FINA, the international governing body of swimming, created a third category for people like Lia Thomas for those who identified as trans non-conforming, non-binary, and whatever it is. There's a separate category for that. No one competed in it. Actually, Thomas went on to sue World Aquatics for this new rule, ultimately making this point that he doesn't want to compete if he can't trample on women in the process here."

Gaines has been against transgender athletes' inclusion in women’s sports since she tied for fifth place with transgender swimmer Lia Thomas in the 200-yard freestyle at the 2022 NCAA Championships.

Riley Gaines takes a sweep at Imane Khelif for allegedly delaying mandatory sex testing

Riley Gaines at the Turning Point USA Inaugural-Eve Ball in Washington, DC. (Photo by Getty Images)

Riley Gaines recently took a swipe at Olympic gold medalist Imane Khelif for allegedly denying a sex test before competing at the 2025 Eindhoven Box Cup and other events hosted under World Boxing. The organization mandated Khelif to undergo a gender test following the Paris Games controversy. Gaines questioned the boxer about the delay.

"World Boxing has deemed Imane Khelif—a male who took an Olympic gold from a woman— ineligible from competing in female boxing. The ban stands unless he submits to a cheek swab required of all boxers proving XX chromosomes. The real question: Why won't Imane Khelif take the test?" she twweted.

Imane Khelif won a gold medal at the Paris Olympics in the welterweight category.