Riley Gaines has expressed delight as transgender swimmer Lia Thomas lost a legal battle against the World Aquatics at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Thomas was challenging the swimming body’s decision to ban transgender swimmers from participation in women’s sports.

Thomas rose to prominence after beating Olympic medalist Emma Weyant by a huge margin of 1.75 seconds, hence becoming the first transgender swimmer to win the NCAA Championships. However, what followed was a huge outcry over social media, prompting a change in the eligibility rules by World Aquatics.

Any transgender swimmer who experienced “male puberty” was deemed to have a physical advantage over female competitors and was therefore disqualified from competing in the women’s division. Thomas challenged the decision at the CAS, arguing the decision was ‘invalid and unlawful’. However, the 25-year-old lost the battle on Wednesday, June 12, 2024.

Riley Gaines, who has been a vocal critic of transgender participation in women’s sports, welcomed the decision against Lia Thomas wholeheartedly. She termed it as a significant victory for ‘women and girls everywhere’.

“Great news! Lia Thomas won’t be able to compete in women’s category at the Olympics or any other elite competition. He has just lost his legal battle in Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling. This is a victory for women and girls everywhere”, she wrote on X.

Gaines and Thomas faced off at the 2022 NCAA Swimming Championships in the 200-meter freestyle event. While both of them had achieved similar timings, Thomas was awarded the higher position, prompting Gaines to become an activist against transgender participation in women’s sports.

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Speaking on Joe Rogan’s podcast in March this year, Riley Gaines claimed that Lia Thomas was physically active with women during the 2022 NCAA Championships, which the transgender athlete had won.

Rogan asked the former Kentucky swimmer if Thomas had slept with any girls while competing in the NCAA Championship. Gaines replied:

“At the time, again this is what I know based on what his teammates have told me and what really has been public knowledge. At the time of that National Championships, he was still dating women, and active with women,” Gaines revealed.

The 24-year-old also revealed that Lia Thomas was ‘engaged to another man’.

“He’s engaged to another man, who claims to be a woman. So two men but they call themselves lesbians,” she added.