Cycling Champ Who Retired After Losing To Biological Male Speaks Out On Trans Athletes In Women's Sports

Hannah Arensman, a 35-time winner on the national cyclocross circuit, recently retired from the sport due to biological men competing against biological women. Now, officially out of cycling, she's speaking out against transgender women in women's sports.

Arensman called it quits shortly after finishing fourth at the UCI Cyclocross National Championship in December. Austin Killips, a biological man, finished third in the race while another transgender female finished just behind her in fifth.

“I have decided to end my cycling career. At my last race at the recent UCI Cyclocross National Championships in the elite women’s category in December 2022, I came in 4th place, flanked on either side by male riders awarded 3rd and 5th places. My sister and family sobbed as they watched a man finish in front of me, having witnessed several physical interactions with him throughout the race," Arensman explained.

Her decision to retire was shared in an amicus brief filed to the Supreme Court in support of the state of West Virginia and its Save Women's Sports law.

Hanna Arensman, a champion cyclist, has retired due to transgender athletes emerging in the sport. (Photo by Tim de Waele/Corbis via Getty Images)

Hannah Arensman Isn't Holding Back Her Thoughts On Trans Women In Sport

Arensman recently spoke with The Telegraph about her experience competing against biological men while reflecting on her decision to retire. She made it clear that she is not holding back on her opinion that biological men have no place in women's sports.

"Now that I’ve retired, people don’t really have anything that they can pull me back on and say, ‘If you want to keep racing, you had better shut up,’" she told The Telegraph. "No. I’m done with the sport. I’ve been a cyclist for 12 years, and that’s that. Now I can freely say stuff that has needed to be said for a while."

"I have a little sister, just 13 years old. With your younger siblings, you feel like you’re in some way responsible, to make sure that they’re protected. And I would hate to see her in a sport where she’s trying to compete against guys in her own field.

Arensman explained that she understood why some people are afraid to speak out against transgender athletes competing against women while specifically citing Riley Gaines' incident earlier this year when she was attacked at San Francisco State University.

Arensman, along with 66 other athletes and coaches, called on the Supreme Court to vacate the preliminary injunction that was dissolved in January when a federal judge ruled transgender women competing did not violate Title IX protections.