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Riley Gaines

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Riley Gaines
Gaines at the 2023 Pastors Summit hosted by Turning Point USA in Nashville, Tennessee
NationalityAmerican
Alma materUniversity of Kentucky
SpouseLouis Barker[1]
Sports career
Websiterileygaines.com
SportSwimming

Riley Gaines, also known as Riley Gaines Barker,[2][1] is an American former competitive swimmer from Gallatin, Tennessee,[3] who competed for the University of Kentucky NCAA swim team. She was the 2022 Southeastern Conference Women's Swimming and Diving Scholar-Athlete of the Year.[4][5][6] Gaines has campaigned against the participation of trans women in women's sports.

Early life

Gaines' parents were also active in sports. Her father, Brad Gaines, played football at Vanderbilt University and her mother, Telisha Gaines, played softball at Donelson Christian Academy and Austin Peay.[7] Gaines attended Station Camp High School in Gallatin, Tennessee.[8] As a junior, she won the 100-meter butterfly and 100-meter freestyle in the TISCA High School Swim & Dive Championship in Knoxville in 2017.[9]

College athletics

Gaines joined the University of Kentucky's swim team and made the All-SEC Freshman Team in 2019. She also made the All-SEC Second Team in 2019 and 2020. She participated in the 2021 NCAA Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships, coming second in the 4 x 200m freestyle relay and seventh in the 200m freestyle race; she made the All-SEC First Team that year.[10]

In 2022, while swimming for the University of Kentucky in the 200-yard NCAA freestyle championship, Gaines tied for fifth place with University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas, who became the first openly trans woman champion in the NCAA women's division after winning the 500-yard freestyle.[2][11]

Political activism

Gaines has advocated against the inclusion of trans women in the women's division of sports, including by lobbying her state representatives in April 2022 to pass a law that would prohibit transgender women from women's sports.[12][13][14]

In September 2022, Gaines supported the campaign of US Senator Rand Paul by appearing in a TV ad for him, where she shared her criticism of trans women in women's sports.[15]

By January 2023, Gaines had participated in a small protest at the NCAA Convention, appeared in campaign advertisements for former US Senate candidate Herschel Walker, and spoken at a Donald Trump rally.[16]

In March 2023, Gaines was an invited speaker at a Texas Senate committee in support of legislation that would categorically prohibit transgender college athletes from competing in sports divisions that align with their gender identity.[2]

In April 2023, Gaines visited San Francisco State University for a Turning Point USA student chapter event and spoke publicly about her campaign against transgender athletes in women's sports.[17][18] After the event concluded, protesters arrived.[19][17] Gaines was escorted by law enforcement officers to shelter in a classroom, where she stayed for three hours while protesters continued to demonstrate outside.[19][17] After the event, Gaines said she had been physically struck twice by a person during the protest.[14][19]

After the SFSU event, SFGATE wrote that Gaines "rose to prominence as an activist last year after tying for fifth place with trans swimmer Lia Thomas," and "has since gone on a public crusade against Thomas."[19] PEN America called the incident a "disaster," adding that "Physical intimidation or violence is never an acceptable response to speech, no matter how hateful or controversial that speech may be."[14]

In June 2023, media watchdog Media Matters published an analysis of Gaines' 29 appearances on Fox News between April 2022 and the end of May 2023, with a focus on the frequency and type of "anti-trans rhetoric" made by Gaines that is "consistent with recent right-wing talking points."[20] According to Media Matters, more than half of Gaines' appearances on Fox News since April 2022 had occurred during April and May 2023.[20]

On June 2, 2023, Gaines has endorsed Ron DeSantis in the 2024 US presidential election.[21]

On June 21, 2023, Gaines appeared as a witness at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing focused on safeguarding civil rights for LGBTQ Americans and according to C-SPAN, shared her "own personal experience competing with trans swimmer Lia Thomas and having to share the same dressing room."[22][23]

In August 2023, Gaines and other members of the anti-trans group Independent Women's Voice accompanied Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt as he signed an executive order developed from model legislation created by Independent Women's Voice and informally referred to as a "Women's Bill of Rights," after similar legislation twice failed to pass in the Oklahoma legislature.[24][25] The executive order directs state agencies to use sex assigned at birth to define male and female, and includes specific definitions for terms such as "man," "boy," "woman," "girl," "father," "mother," "female," and "male."[25][24][26]

References

  1. ^ a b Morris, Kyle (2023-04-08). "Riley Gaines 'ambushed and physically hit' after Saving Women's Sports speech at San Francisco State". FOX 5 Atlanta. Archived from the original on 2023-06-13. Retrieved 2023-06-12.
  2. ^ a b c Goldenstein, Taylor (2023-03-14). "Three female athletes back Texas college transgender sports ban as LGBTQ activists warn of harm". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2023-06-09.
  3. ^ Bird, Darrel (2021-03-05). "Women athletes are crushing it at Kentucky, and nationally". 24/7 Sports. Archived from the original on 2021-03-05. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  4. ^ "Riley Gaines Named SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year". The Sports Ledger. Archived from the original on 2022-09-29. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  5. ^ Vaught, Larry (2021-02-14). "Success nothing new for Riley Gaines but she would like to add SEC title this week". Your Sports Edge 2021. Archived from the original on 2023-04-08. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  6. ^ Vaught, Larry (2021-02-11). "Junior Riley Gaines expects UK to contend for title in unique SEC Championships". The State Journal. Archived from the original on 2023-04-08. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  7. ^ Organ, Mike (2016-03-27). "Former Vanderbilt star careful not to pressure his kids". The Tennessean. Archived from the original on 2023-04-12. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  8. ^ Brooks, Chris (2016-07-03). "Gaines has 'good experience' in trials". The Tennessean. pp. M.9. Archived from the original on 2023-04-12. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  9. ^ Michael, Murphy (2017-02-22). "Riley Gaines three-peats -- twice: Station Camp junior wins 100 free, 100 fly for third year in a row". The Tennessean. pp. M.4. ISSN 1053-6590.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) ProQuest 1870507109
  10. ^ "2022 SEC Swimming & Diving Scholar-Athletes of the Year Announced". SwimSwam. 2022-02-18. Archived from the original on 2022-12-10. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  11. ^ Barnes, Katie (2022-03-17). "Thomas first transgender athlete to win D-I title". ESPN. Archived from the original on 2022-03-18. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  12. ^ Linder, Brian (2022-04-04). "Kentucky's Riley Gaines says NCAA needs to 'make changes' to rules that allowed transgender swimmer Lia Thomas to compete at national championships". PENN Live. Archived from the original on 2022-04-06. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  13. ^ McClanahan, Gil (2022-04-13). "Ky. Senate overrides veto of Fairness in Women's Sports Act; UK swimmer voices her opinion". WHCS FOX 11 Eyewitness News. Archived from the original on 2023-04-04. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  14. ^ a b c Chen, Natasha; Mossburg, Cheri (2023-04-07). "Former college swimmer says she was assaulted at an event opposing the inclusion of trans women in women's sports". CNN. Archived from the original on 2023-04-08. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  15. ^ Watkins, Morgan (2022-10-29). "Rand Paul campaign ad features former UK swimmer, slams transgender athletes, trans women". Courier Journal. Archived from the original on 2023-04-08. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  16. ^ Foster, Matt (2023-01-13). "Protest over inclusion of transgender athletes in women's sports held outside NCAA Convention". CNN. Archived from the original on 2023-03-16. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  17. ^ a b c Hernandez, Adriana (2023-04-07). "Riley Gaines visit to SF State results in trans-rights activist protest". Golden Gate Xpress. Archived from the original on 2023-04-08. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  18. ^ Ross, Alexandra (2023-03-28). "'Spiritual warfare': Riley Gaines speaks against trans women in women's sports at on-campus event". The Pitt News. Archived from the original on 2023-04-05. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  19. ^ a b c d Regimbal, Alec (2023-04-07). "Anti-Lia Thomas activist whisked away by police amid protest at San Francisco State". SFGATE. Archived from the original on 2023-04-07. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  20. ^ a b Tirrell, Alyssa (2023-06-13). "Over a year after her last race against Lia Thomas, Riley Gaines has built a media career on the trans swimmer's name". Media Matters for America. Retrieved 2023-06-14.
  21. ^ "Riley Gaines Praises Ron DeSantis as a Leader Who Has 'Drawn the Line,' Protected Women's Sports". National Review. 2023-06-03. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  22. ^ "American Swimmer Riley Gaines on Competing with Trans Athlete Lia Thomas". C-SPAN.org. 2023-06-21. Retrieved 2023-06-25.
  23. ^ Ring, Trudy (2023-06-22). "Anti-Trans Misinformation Spewed at Senate Hearing — But It Gets Countered". The Advocate. Retrieved 2023-06-25.
  24. ^ a b France, Hannah; Korth, Robby (2023-08-01). "Oklahoma Executive Order enacts 'Women's Bill of Rights,' critics call it 'transmisogyny'". KOSU/NPR. Retrieved 2023-08-03.
  25. ^ a b Murphy, Sean (2023-08-01). "Transgender rights targeted in executive order signed by Oklahoma governor". AP News. Retrieved 2023-08-03.
  26. ^ Stitt, Kevin (2023-08-01). "Executive Order 2023-20" (PDF). Oklahoma Secretary of State. Retrieved 2023-08-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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