close
close

Lyricsfood

Sharpen your edge

Riley Gaines criticizes Georgia Tech president in remarks to lawmakers: ‘Why didn’t you protect me?’
News Update

Riley Gaines criticizes Georgia Tech president in remarks to lawmakers: ‘Why didn’t you protect me?’

Join Fox News to access this content

Plus special access to select articles and other premium content with your account – free of charge.

By entering your email address and clicking “Continue,” you agree to Fox News’ Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, which includes our Financial Incentive Notice.

Please enter a valid email address.

Having problems? Click here.

Riley Gaines is scheduled to speak before the Georgia General Assembly’s Special Committee to Protect Women’s Sports on Tuesday morning, more than two years after she tied with transgender swimmer Lia Thomas at the NCAA Championships at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Gaines is expected to speak before Georgia Tech President Angel Cabrera. In a prepared statement obtained by Fox News Digital, Gaines questions why Cabrera did not protect Gaines or any of the other swimmers who competed in the championships.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

Lia Thomas Upenn Nationals

Transgender athlete Lia Thomas is seen here after winning the women’s 500-yard freestyle during the NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships at the McAuley Aquatic Center on the campus of Georgia Tech in Atlanta on March 17, 2022. (Mike Comer/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

“Dr. Cabrera, you knew that a 6’4″, perfectly intact man was coming to compete against me, my teammates and my competitors at the 2022 NCAA Division I Women’s National Swimming and Diving Championships,” Gaines’ comments read. “Do you have a daughter? You could have stopped it, you could have at least said, ‘Not here, not on the campus of Georgia Tech University,’ but you did not. You had a chance from the beginning to bring a reasonable, rational, science-based perspective to protect women’s sports, but you looked the other way and did nothing. Why did you not intervene?

“The scientific evidence of the immense performance advantage of men in sport is overwhelming – I don’t have to explain this to you or this committee, but you have ignored the scientific evidence to the detriment of women.”

WOMEN’S FOOTBALL CLUB WITH SEVERAL TRANSGENDER PLAYERS WINS LEAGUE TITLE AND REMAINS UNDEFEATED

Riley Gaines at the RNC 2024

Riley Gaines signs copies of her book outside the Fiserv Forum during the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 17, 2024. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via Getty Images)

“Your representatives at Georgia Tech University knew that a naked adult male with full male genitalia was authorized by Georgia Tech University to share a locker room with hundreds of female students who would themselves be naked, unable to hide, and unable to protect their privacy. This was intentional, premeditated sexual harassment, and it happened right here, in the capital of the state of Georgia, just blocks from the grounds of Georgia Tech University.

“Because you did nothing, this man walked into the women’s locker room at your university and saw me completely undressed. I didn’t even know he had access to the women’s locker room until I heard a man’s voice and turned around and saw him standing a few feet in front of me, and I was undressed. You allowed female students on your campus to be traumatized in this way. Why didn’t you protect me? Why didn’t you protect us?”

Cabrera apparently declined to testify before the committee, and Gaines asked him to rehabilitate his testimony.

Riley Gaines is overtaken by Lia Thomas

Lia Thomas (left) and Riley Gaines are seen here after placing fifth in the 200m freestyle final during the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta on March 18, 2022. (Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

“Dr. Cabrera, if you want to make amends for the past and protect women in college sports today, you can take a critical step toward a more equitable future for women and humanity,” she added. “Thousands of women across this country, and hundreds of girls who dream of swimming for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and, more broadly, of competing in sports at all, look forward to your response.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Read Riley Gaines’ full remarks below.

LEAVE A RESPONSE

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *