Simone Biles attacks Riley Gaines

Having had the experience of researching the accusations made about Kellie Jay Keen on Wikipedia, I wouldn’t trust Wikipedia at all when supposedly reporting anything about woman’s rights campaigner.

I would go to the original source and actually also listen to what was said.

Considering simply talking to someone considered controversial leads to an alignment accusation these days, I don’t take anything Wikipedia and even any media source at face value these days.

This is the utter shitshow of the Wikipedia entry on Imane Khelif. It’s “naive” to think you get any sort of balanced information from Wikipedia.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Imane_Khelif

Would you be able to link to where Riley Gaines says something hateful about LGB people please?

https://x.com/againstgrmrs/status/1931374073709560155?s=46&t=ZX_bLozRqm8etdGICMcAvA

Gays against Groomers wrote a post about working with RG for years. You would think an LGB group with such a big following wouldn’t be interested in her if they thought she had an issue with them.

Exactly.

I wouldn’t trust Wikipedia to tell me what year it was.

Again this diminishes women's sport to let them set the narrative around '5th place'. We shouldn't allow that in the pursuit of reinstating boundaries. We can stand firm for respect across the board.

I called her that in response to a snide comment by someone special pleading and deflecting from Biles’ shitty comment. She called her that sarcastically, and I responded by saying I agreed she was marvellous. But I can see we’re well into the purity spiral 🙄

Look at her popular podcast Gaines For Girls, where she pals around w the homophobic Alliance Defending Freedom, & Kirk Cameron, who calls homosexuality a danger to society. She expresses v anti abortion & somewhat anti feminist views too on there. She may not be MAGA as in a Trump worshipper, but she does have views that align w the more extreme bits of MAGA.

I honestly find some people on here a bit naive. I agree we should ally w the right to fight trans. But people seem v naive about the reactionary views many right wingers hold. Just go on Wikipedia or search Riley Gaines view on different issues, and you can support in an informed way.

Riley Gaines has a different perspective in that Thomas was also being a creep in the changing rooms. It’s not necessary to agree with her on anything else, or like her. But her voice is important IMO.

Is RG notoriously MAGA (more so than the rest of Americans who voted Trump)? Not that it would change my stance on supporting her re trans swimmers in women's competition.

But I saw her giving a House speech after the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act 2025 was passed. She seemed really angry at Democrats - due to their stance on women's rights - rather than a massive Trump stan. The view she expressed was that Trump won the 2024 election not simply because of his politics and what he offered America but - her words - because the American people made a commonsense choice to reject the Democrat party's "absurdity" on the issue of trans ideology (among other things).

I don't really like this attitude that the US is v different & many agree, so that makes these opinions more acceptable. As I put in previous posts , segregation & other extreme views were popular there not all that long ago. Does that make it more excusable- bc lots of people believe it? There is never an excuse for not thinking for oneself. If we all stuck w what everyone else believed we'd still be in the Dark Ages.

Disappointing that the guardian article doesn't acknowledge that separate categories for transgender people are something that, I imagine, most women are hugely in favour of. It paints the GC side as wanting to stop transwomen playing at all which just isn't the case.

I agree about partisanship. I don't think the 2 you mentioned are politically active apart from on trans stuff tho, while Gaines is actively pushing the above anti-abortion & lgb etc on her podcast. However, in the trans struggle we need all support.

Ofc she wouldn't campaign for the dems. But it's much more than that. As we've seen, she's v anti abortion & lgb rights, among others. This does not negate her trans advocacy, but it doesn't make her 'marvellous' as pps called her.

I agree that her trans advocacy is v important. But re abortion, her views being shared by millions of Americans doesn't make them any more acceptable just bc many share them. Millions of 1950s Americans supported segregation, and the criminalisation of homosexuality was supported by many into the 90s. As Anatole France said, ' If 40 million people say a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing.'

She does ally w stuff like the Alliance Defending Freedom who are pretty virulent about lgb people, as well as the charmingly homophobic Kirk Cameron. This does NOT invalidate her trans opinions.

While I respect Gaines' advocacy, I dislike her. She's pretty chummy w orgs like the Alliance Defending Freedom who oppose lgb rights not just t.

Simone Biles' comments are awful though. I used to really admire her but it's hard to forgive this.

I do think the focus on Gaines' case can be counterproductive as TRAs counter that she only tied for 5th place w Lia Thomas, rather than being blatantly beaten. Angela Carini is a much better case to argue w as we all saw brutal violence & unfairness there... Or Semenya, who has lied about being a man all along.

When you can't defend the indefensible you have to distract and discredit. Riley Gaines is right about the unfairness of males in female sport and this is what the subject is about.

If she is against abortion, well I disagree with her over that, I don't support her views on abortion just because I support her views on males in female sport.

But nuance doesn't exist with people who roll out the "far right" label for everyone they don't agree with.

Wow the comments on her Insta are blowing up. Im guessing it’s a matter of time before her PR shut down posting comments which is always what happens when these people can’t quite fathom a decent response in their defence. I wonder how SB would enjoy having a male gymnast in the women’s team

If we are to take people's actions into this doesn't that mean that those on the "Left" that support trans-activism.

Are Pro no-debate
Beat women up
Kidnap women when they try and discuss the issues
Hold women for ransom when they try and discuss the issues
Are against women only spaces.
Hate lesbians as they won't sleep with men (homophobic)
Hate gay men as they won't sleep with women (homophobic)
Ignore the law (both UK and US) (criminals)
Ignore safeguarding for children.

And these are ones directly related to the right wing/left wing way the thread has gone.

Or alternatively we are allowed to support causes and ignore others politics.

And Simone Biles is just another sports person pulling the ladder up behind them.

None whatsoever.

Simone Biles' views seem to be that it is OK to body shame other female athletes and that it is Riley Gaines' job to ensure trans inclusion in sports.

Trans people are already included in sports providing they respect the same anti doping rules as anyone else.

If Simone Biles thinks transgender sporting categories are the answer and that it is up to female athletes to make that happen, she should volunteer herself for the job, not Riley Gaines.