ESPN celebrated Girls’s Historical past Month by honoring transgender swimmer Lia Thomas.
William “Lia” Thomas was a mediocre swimmer who couldn’t win medals competing as a person. He determined he was transgender and instantly, he’s a champion!
Thomas competed for 2 full seasons as a person earlier than ‘transitioning’ right into a feminine, shattering ladies’s swim information and changing into a champion within the ladies’s 500 freestyle on the NCAA swimming championships final 12 months.
Former collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines has been a courageous voice in making an attempt to cease males from erasing ladies in athletics.
Gaines responded ESPN’s insult to ladies through Twitter, “Lia Thomas just isn’t a courageous, brave lady who earned a nationwide title,” Gaines, an outspoken advocate for protecting organic males out of ladies’s sports activities. He’s an smug cheat who stole a nationwide title from a hardworking, deserving lady. The @ncaa is accountable. If I used to be a lady working at ESPN, I’d stroll out. You’re spineless @espn #boycottESPN.”
The ladies at ESPN have been largely silent aside from a couple of courageous voices.
Earlier this month, SportsCenter anchor Sage Steele shared assist for Gaines after the disgusting abuse she confronted after a speech at San Francisco State College.
Keep robust @Riley_Gaines_ …you have got extra individuals than you understand supporting you & standing as much as this insanity. https://t.co/Tyj2RAHNLQ
— Sage Steele (@sagesteele) April 7, 2023
ESPN host Samatha Ponder additionally weighed in with assist for Gaines.
The New York Submit experiences:
On Wednesday, ESPN host Samantha Ponder, 37, additionally supported Gaines in opposition of invoice offered by the Biden administration earlier this month.
The proposed replace to Title IX laws would prohibit blanket bans of transgender athletes competing towards ladies.
“Beneath the guise of aggressive equity?” Gaines requested in a tweet exhibiting a video of former Penn swimmer Lia Thomas calling a invoice from the Biden administration a “good begin,” but in addition calling for the invoice to increase past Kindergarten via eighth grade and apply to highschool and school athletes as effectively.
This might take away so many alternatives for organic ladies and ladies in sports activities. It’s a disgrace that we’re needing to battle for the integrity of Title IX in 2023 and the rationale it was wanted within the first place. #savewomensports https://t.co/5Ufeha2emq
— Samantha Steele Ponder (@samponder) April 19, 2023