Riley Gaines ruthlessly mocked because she’s still mad about tying for fifth at a swim meet in 2022
It has been almost three years since anti-trans activist Riley Gaines tied for 5th place with a trans opponent in an NCAA swimming competition. Yet Gaines continues to allow what she has deemed this gross injustice to shape her entire life.
Gaines has used the non-situation to build a career in anti-trans activism. Her argument that trans women uniformly possess unfair physical advantages over cisgender women has evolved over the past two years to include broader anti-trans claims, including that trans women pose a threat to cis women’s safety. She has become a darling of conservative media, which has allowed her to spew hateful misinformation.
Related
The absurdity of being Riley Gaines
Her life story would be an absurd premise for a tragedy, but she’s always the main character.
And folks have had enough.
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Replies to Gaines’s most recent anti-trans post on X – which yet again brings up her fifth-place tie – are overwhelmingly riddled with people mocking her for her inability to move on, with many pointing out she didn’t even lose to the trans swimmer, Lia Thomas, and still placed behind four cisgender women in the race.
On October 1, Gaines angrily responded to Democratic vice presidential candidate Gov. Tim Walz for saying his party is “pro-women” when it comes to reproductive rights. Gaines somehow made the comment about her, turned it into an issue about trans women in sports.
“Did Tim Walz REALLY just say they’re ‘pro-women’ ?????” Gaines wrote on X. “Then explain this to me like I’m 5.” Accompanying the post was a photo of Gaines and Thomas at the competition.
Did Tim Walz REALLY just say they're "pro-women" ?????Then explain this to me like I'm 5 pic.twitter.com/2IsaI26OPD— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) October 2, 2024
Responders ruthlessly made fun of Gaines both for refusing to move on from a school sports event and for failing to understand that Walz’s comment was about abortion rights. They also pointed out that four cis women also beat Thomas, negating Gaines’s arguments that trans women are at an advantage or that a trans woman stole anything from her.
"Like I'm 5." Your whole personality is finishing in 5th-place. You already are 5 https://t.co/E9qIQCrJpL— Jason Kirk (read my novel) (@JasonKirk_fyi) October 2, 2024
If you insist: I know you love swimming and you're so good at it and it's frustrating when we don't win things but the Governor is thinking of women who might die in the hospital because of bad laws his opponent supports— Ari Drennen (@AriDrennen) October 2, 2024
Jesus Christ, you lost. Get over it.— David Roberts (@drvolts) October 2, 2024
You come in 5th place once and we gotta hear about it for the rest of existence…Girl, ya lost.— Ron Rozycki (@BastrdOfMuppets) October 2, 2024
Also, she wasn't beaten by a trans woman. They tied. She performed exactly as good as the person she's made a career of pretending has some insurmountable biologist advantage, who Incidentally, was also beaten by four other cıs women.— Tony (@UnitedShoes) October 2, 2024
Y'all tied for 5th, meaning that 4 women beat both of you fair and square. Hope this helps.— nominal.naomi (@nominalnaomi) October 2, 2024
What did Tim Walz have to do with this race? Nothing.— #Kamala2024 Ukraine supporter (@mrshellwinger) October 2, 2024
You lost to 3 cis women. Get over it. You just weren’t that good.— Ryan Marino, MD (@RyanMarino) October 2, 2024
Why do you continue to erase the 4 other women who beat you into 5th place whilst obsessing with the one woman who you drew with for 5th?For someone who claims to be a supporter of women's sports you have built your grift on disregarding the performances of those 4 women.— EJ Roshambo (Cis) – Inner Monologue (Parody) (@EJ_Roshambo) October 2, 2024
you're a lot dumber than a 5 year old, so that's gonna be tough— n x d (@nxd1979) October 2, 2024
“This is an image of two women who tied for fifth, one of whom got angry about it and tried to disqualify the other any way she could.”Most kids get the concept of a sore loser, or of someone who doesn’t want to share.— Queer Armorer is on YouTube (@QueerArmorer) October 2, 2024
Stop bitch please! You tied for 5th place over 3 years ago! – get the fuck over it already – quit acting like you would have won— Miz Anthrope (@jenaglez) October 2, 2024
imagine making losing your entire personality— liz (@unrealizzztic) October 2, 2024
LISTEN UP LIBERAL: I LOST A SWIM MEET— Ari Drennen (@AriDrennen) October 2, 2024
That what MAGAs do blame their mediocrity on others— Sandy 51 (@sandraivette51) October 2, 2024
I'd be embarrassed if I had to turn my entire career into that time I can in 5th place. Can we bring back shame?— William jones (@Williamjon56935) October 3, 2024
Riley Gains acts like she lost first place to a trans woman but she actually tied with a trans woman for 5th place behind 4 cis women. So she’s just a loser https://t.co/IYlF7MA5Xs— evan loves worf (@esjesjesj) October 2, 2024
I really don't understand Riley Gaines's beef here. If Lia Thomas never competed or even existed, she still lost to 4 other women. https://t.co/ycNOxaNWTT pic.twitter.com/0hzLl4HJBR— Augie Brunette (@augiefresh73) October 3, 2024
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