Riley Gaines, Other Elite Female Athletes Applaud Passage Of 'Protection Of Women And Girls In Sports Act'

A group of elite female athletes have signed a statement applauding the U.S. House for passing the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act.

Their letter was signed by 72 female athletes who compete at the highest levels in a variety of women's sports. The list includes swimmer Riley Gaines, who's faced physical and verbal threats in recent months over the fight to protect and ensure competitive fairness.

READ: RILEY GAINES: I WAS ASSAULTED BY A TRANSGENDER MOB AND THIS IS WHAT I PLAN TO DO NEXT

The letter was organized by the advocacy division of the Independent Women’s Forum, Independent Women’s Voice, in response to Megan Rapinoe’s efforts to oppose the bill.

Rapinoe’s letter had just 40 athletes sign, while Wednesday’s effort had 72 attach their names.

Other signees associated with IWF include Adriana McLamb (Volleyball, NCAA), Kelsey Bolar (Lacrosse, NCAA), and Lynn Hatcher (Golf, NCAA).

Also included were members of the Independent Women's Network, Megan Burke (Track & Field, NCAA) and Margo Knorr (Track & Field, NCAA). The Independent Women's Network serves as the national grassroots community activist arm of Independent Women's Voice.

Over 20 Olympians also joined, such as Nancy Hogshead-Makar a swimmer who competed for the U.S. team in 1984.

Payton McNabb, the high school volleyball player injured by a trans athlete is another notable name to publicly back the bill.

Numerous women’s organizations, IWF as well as ICONS, have been fighting against incursions into women's sports, such as the Biden administration's proposed Title IX overhaul.

READ: WOMEN’S ADVOCACY GROUP SLAMS BIDEN’S PROPOSED TITLE IX CHANGES AS ‘INTENTIONAL DISCRIMINATION’ AGAINST WOMEN

The statement issued Wednesday accepts biological truths that many in the activist community have attempted to suppress.

"But without single-sex teams and single-sex competition, men will dominate women in competitive sports where strength, size or speed are relevant factors. That is because, physiologically, the average male is stronger, bigger, and faster than the average female," the statement reads.

This undeniable reality had been accepted for virtually all of human history, until transgender activists demanded that biology be sidelined.

Women's Sports Need Defending From Activist Pressure

The statement hits at all of the important points in the debate over biological males in women's sports.

Forcing females to compete against males is "unfair," "discriminatory," and "illegal."

Carrie Lukas, vice president of Independent Women’s Voice, said in a statement that “allowing biological males to take awards, roster spots, scholarships, or spots at a school from female athletes violates Title IX’s prohibition of discrimination ‘on the basis of sex.’” 

And as Riley Gaines has already explained, it's far from inclusive.

Gaines, spokeswoman for Independent Women’s Voice, expressed her thanks for the passage of the legislation.

“Thank you Senator Tuberville for urging the U.S. Senate to pass legislation that would protect women and girls in sports. I was ecstatic last week after Speaker McCarthy passed this on the House side with every single Republican voting in favor, but heartbroken that not one Democrat voted to protect women and girls in sports. I'm hopeful the Senate will do better. Girls deserve safe and fair play,” she said in a statement.

The passage of the bill in the House an important first step to enshrining these protections within Title IX. Of course, it now faces an uphill battle in the Senate, where the Democratic majority often sides with trans activists over biological reality.

As Gaines’ mentioned, every single Democrat in the House of Representatives voted against protecting women's sports. Given that, it seems unlikely that Democrats in the Senate will be more willing to stand up to defend females.

Regardless, it's vitally important that elite female athletes continue to press for fairness and equality in sports and other areas of life.

Allowing biological males to dominate women's sports is inexcusable. And despite the obvious, in the modern world it takes courage to stand up against the political mob.

That's exactly what this bill and this statement represents. The courage to stand up and tell the truth.

Written by
Ian Miller is a former award watching high school actor, author, and long suffering Dodgers fan. He spends most of his time golfing, traveling, reading about World War I history, and trying to get the remote back from his dog. Follow him on Twitter @ianmSC