Former college swimming champion Riley Gaines is challenging soon-to-be former U.S. Womenâs Soccer star Megan Rapinoe to a debate after the pro Soccer player proclaimed that âtrans Women are Womenâ and said sheâd welcome men claiming to be Women on the U.S. Womenâs National Team roster.
Rapinoe recently told Time magazine that she thinks men who claim to be Women are âreal Womenâ and blasted critics who oppose transgenders playing as Women in Womenâs Sports. She also argued that critics are âtransphobicâ for opposing men invading Womenâs Sports.
The USWNT captain insisted that men are not taking the place of âreal Womenâ in Sports because TransgenderWomen are âreal Womenâ already.
Rapinoe said that the argument that, ââYouâre taking a ârealâ womanâs place,ââ is an illegitimate argument to make. She added, âthatâs the part of the argument thatâs still extremely transphobic. I see trans Women as real Women. What youâre saying automatically in the argument â youâre sort of telling on yourself already â is you donât believe these people are Women. Therefore, theyâre taking the other spot. I donât feel that way.â
The Soccer player also blasted people who oppose transgenders in Sports, including tennis great Martina Navratilova and ESPN commentator Sage Steele, calling them all transphobic.
âI donât want to mince words about it,â Rapinoe told Time. âWhen Martina or Sage or whoever are talking about this, people arenât hearing it just in the context of elite Sports. Theyâre saying, âThe rest of my life, this is how Iâm going to treat trans people.'â
On the other hand, even though Rapinoe is suggesting that men can play on the Womenâs national team, Rapinoe also just announced her retirement â set to begin at the end of this Soccer season â and will never be faced with playing with or against men claiming to be Women.
So, while her career will never be impacted by men playing on her team, Rapino is advocating for just that fate to befall future Women players.
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Rapinoeâs stance has raised opposition, of course. Tennis great Navratilova, for instance, blasted the Soccer player after the Soccer star made her comments.
Navratilova struck back at Rapinoeâs attack, first tweeting âyikes.â
Then, the next day, wrote, âHmmm. Really Megan?â
The national anthem protester, LGBTactivist, stark anti-American, equal pay pusher, and anti-Trumper is going out with a whimper, but Riley Gaines is ready to give Rapinoe just a bit more publicity before she fades off into deserved obscurity, Outkick reported.
âHad Megan Rapinoe been asked ⌠while trying to advance to the height of her career, she would not have the same opinions because a man could easily take her place. Easily,â Gained said.
Gaines went on to issue an official challenge.
âConsider this an official invite,â Gaines added. âMegan Rapinoe, I would love it if you joined the new âGaines for Girlsâ podcast where we could have an open dialogue about the issue of men competing in Womenâs Sports.â (âGaines for Girlsâ is the former swimmrâs new podcast in partnership with OutKick.)
Gaines made her challenge on âThe Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Showâ on Monday.
Unlike Rapinoe, Gaines knows all too well what it is like to be forced to compete against a bigger, more powerful male who claims to be a woman. After all, Gaines facedTransgender swimmer Lia Thomas, who tore through college swimming, winning titles after supposedly âtransitioningâ to a woman during the NCAA 2021-22 swimming season.
While it isnât likely that Rapinoe will be brave enough to face Gaines in a debate on the topic of transgenders in Sports, if Rapinoe had the courage of her convictions, it would be the perfect opportunity to prove her point.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
