Riley Gaines reveals swimmer felt safe changing in “jaintor’s closet” rather in front of trans athlete Lia Thomas during the 2022 NCAA Championship
While making her appearance before the US Senate, swimmer Riley Gaines once again revealed the horrific experience of sharing the locker room with Lia Thomas in the 2022 NCAA event.
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Riley Gaines (left) and Lia Thomas (right) [Pic Credit: OutKick/Axios]
The issue revolving around the ban on the participation of trans athletes grows with each passing day. On Wednesday, women’s advocate Riley Gaines appeared before the US Senate. During the hearing, she raised concerns on several topics regarding her rival Lia Thomas and the Biden administration. The former Kentucky swimmer revealed how unsafe she and the others felt while sharing the locker room with Thomas.
Gaines mentioned all this while appearing at the “Protecting Pride: Defending the Civil Rights of LGBTQ+ Americans”. During the NCAA tournament in 2022, Gaines and her fellow female teammates were left in shock, when the authorities allowed Thomas in their room. The trans athlete was allowed to change in their locker room.
The members of the team were left “uncomfortable” and “violated” by Thomas. She further revealed how many of them decided to change in the “janitor’s closet” instead of changing in front of Thomas. They were also shocked when the 6-foot-4 athlete took off the gear and showed her male genitalia in the room.
Gaines later filed a $2 million lawsuit against Thomas for this horrific experience. At the hearing, Gaines also slammed the NCAA for keeping them in the dark. She alleged that the organization not only allowed this to happen without their consent but also did not provide any other accommodation to other female swimmers.
“There was an even group of girls who got undressed in the janitor’s closet because they felt more comfortable in that environment,” Gaines told the Senate while hitting out at Thomas. She further attacked the San Francisco law enforcement for failing to protect her during the attacks from an angry mob.
Riley Gaines slams SF law enforcement for failing to protect her during the attack at SFSU
Riley Gaines had a disturbing time when she arrived at a university in San Francisco for a speech. The swimmer was called upon to share her experience of facing Thomas, a male trans athlete during the NCAA tournament. During the speech she was attacked by a group of angry mob as protestors held her hostage.
Recalling this horrific incident she slammed the SF law enforcement for “failing miserably” to protect her. Gaines claimed that the law officials she met in the city of California had failed miserably in ensuring her safety and carrying out their duties.
Her husband Louis Barker had earlier revealed how powerless he felt when she informed about being hit multiple times by a man in a dress. Gaines later slammed Lia Thomas regarding her comments on feminism. While appearing at a podcast with Schuyler Bailar, Thomas had called out her critics. The NCAA champion had labeled her fellow female athletes who did not support her as “transphobic feminists.”
Replying to this incident, Gaines mentioned feminism as “the meaning of what it is to be a feminist is to uphold, respect, honour and embrace and celebrate women on our own physical ceilings, our own uniqueness.” Speaking on Thomas she said in simple sentences that “this is a man mansplaining what it is to be a feminist.”
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Vinay Dave
(1743 Articles Published)