Former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines launches center to advocate for biological women

WASHINGTON (TND) Former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines announced the launch of a new initiative to further her fight for womens rights in sports. The Riley Gaines Centerwill open at the leadership institute, a conservative nonprofit in Arlington, Virginia.

WASHINGTON (TND) — Former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines announced the launch of a new initiative to further her fight for women’s rights in sports.

The Riley Gaines Centerwill open at the leadership institute, a conservative nonprofit in Arlington, Virginia.

This is something that I wish I had when I began to speak up," said Gaines. "What we want to accomplish through the Riley Gaines Center is to inspire and empower leaders, giving them the resources, giving them the training, the mentoring, the guidance to be leaders."

Gaines rose to national prominence when she began speaking out against what she saw as injustices in women's sports. In the 2022 NCAA Swimming and Diving National Championships Gaines tied U-Penn's Lia Thomas, a 6'4" transgender woman, for fifth place.

I felt totally betrayed by the NCAA in this moment," said Gaines. "I was like, 'Hold on, this is exactly what Title 9 was passed to prevent yet now you’re telling us we have to embrace it and if we don’t, we’re the problem."

Working with the new center is University of Cincinnati student Olivia Krolczyk who went viral on TikTok when a professor gave her a failing grade for using the term “biological woman.”

The fact that I was actually silenced for speaking the truth when speaking the truth is the most important thing right now, that’s what really threw me into this," said Krolczyk.

Gaines successfully advocated for the Save Women’s Sports Act in Texas.

The law bans biological males from competing in women’s sports at Texas colleges and universities. Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed the bill into law this week. Texas joined 15 other states with similar bans.

The Biden Administration’s proposed changes to Title 9 would make these state bans illegal.

On Capitol Hill, House Republicans have pushed for a federal ban on transgender students participating on sports teams different from their biological gender.

The White House confirmed President Joe Biden would veto any such legislation if it lands on his desk.

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