Latest news with #faircompetition
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Simone Biles apologizes to Riley Gaines for personal taunt in bitter feud over trans athletes
Simone Biles has issued a public apology to Riley Gaines for comparing her to a man in a bitter attack over her stance on trans athletes. After Gaines criticized a Minnesota softball team with a trans pitcher, Biles called her 'truly sick' and told her to 'bully someone your own size, which would ironically be male'. On Tuesday, Biles wrote on X: 'I wanted to follow up from my last tweets. I've always believed competitive equity & inclusivity are both essential in sport. 'The current system doesn't adequately balance these important principles, which often leads to frustration and heated exchanges, and it didn't help for me to get personal with Riley, which I apologize for. 'These are sensitive, complicated issues that I truly don't have the answers or solutions to, but I believe it starts with empathy and respect. 'I was not advocating for policies that compromise fairness in women's sports. My objection is to be singling out children for public scrutiny in ways that feel personal and harmful. 'Individual athletes—especially kids—should never be the focus of criticism of a flawed system they have no control over. 'I believe sports organizations have a responsibility to come up with rules supporting inclusion while maintaining fair competition. We all want a future for sport that is fair, inclusive, and respectful.'
Fox News
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Trans athlete qualifies for California girls' track and field state championship amid federal investigation
A biologically male trans athlete will compete for the girls' long jump and triple jump state championship in California next week. The trans athlete finished in first place in both events at Saturday's California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Track Championship Masters Qualifiers. In triple jump, the athlete won with a distance of 40-04.75, while the runner up only reached 39-06.00. In long jump, the trans athlete's margin of victory was shorter, reaching 19-03.50 while the runner-up managed 19-00.75. During the long jump medal ceremony, the athlete who finished in third place did not show up and accept the third place medal next to the trans athlete. No reason has been given. The second-place finisher received a noticeably vocal applause. Tracy Howton, a local parent of an athlete who competes in track and field, attended the event Saturday and had to witness what is becoming a regular site for her and others in the community. "As the parent of a female jumper, we have watched this happen at the last three track meets. Today we watched incredible female athletes lose their opportunities to go to states to a biological male. I can't imagine how devastating it would feel to work so hard and then be unfairly stripped of your opportunity to compete at states. It's heartbreaking," Howton told Fox News Digital. "Governor Newsom, our California elected officials and the CIF are failing our girls. It's that simple. They owe the competitive female athletes of California representation. They owe them responsible decisions based on science and fundamental truth. For our family, this experience has reinforced just how important it is to use your voice to stand up for truth, remembering that bad decisions can be corrected." The CIF has been at the center of a national controversy in recent weeks as the trans athlete has dominated the girls' track and field postseason. The situation has become so volatile that President Donald Trump's administration sent a warning to the CIF and the athlete's high school, Jurupa Valley High School, of consequences for allowing the situation to continue. CIF is already under investigation by the U.S. Department of Education for defying Trump's "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" executive order. The federation came under additional scrutiny when its officials allegedly forced athletes to remove shirts that read "Protect Girls Sports" at the Southern Sectional prelims on May 10. "CIF's and Jurupa Valley High School's apparent flouting of federal civil rights law by allowing a male athlete to compete in a female California track and field [Southern Sectional Division 3 final] this Saturday, and the alleged retaliation against the girls who are protesting this, is indefensible," Julie Hartman, a Department of Education spokesperson, previously told Fox News Digital. "We will not allow institutions to trample upon women's civil rights. OCR's (Office of Civil Rights) investigation into CIF continues with vigor." The Jurupa Unified School District (JUSD) has responded to the controversy in a previous statement to Fox News Digital. "JUSD continues to follow both California law and CIF policy regarding school athletics. Both state law and CIF policy currently require that students be permitted to participate in athletic teams and competitions consistent with their gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the pupil's records. JUSD remains committed to protecting the rights and safety of the students we serve, in accordance with applicable state and federal laws," the statement reads. The situation is set to come to a head next Saturday when the athlete will look to cap off a dominant postseason run with a pair of state titles. The event will take place at Veterans Memorial Stadium at Buchanan High School in Clovis, California, and will feature a rematch between the trans athlete and a female athlete who has spoken out against her trans opponent's inclusion. In long jump, the athlete will face off against Katie McGuiness, who came in second place behind the athlete at last weekend's sectional final. McGuiness earned an automatic state championship qualification this Saturday with a distance of 18-05.50. "I ran down the runway, and I landed, and I watched them measure my mark, and it was 18.9," McGuiness said in an interview on Fox News' "America Reports." "And I just remember thinking that there was nothing else that I could do. That was it. And I was honestly very discouraged, and I'm a high school senior and winning CIF has always been a goal of mine, and I wasn't able to compete with someone who was genetically different than me." McGuinness made her overall stance on the issue clear. "There are just certain genetic advantages that biological males have that biological girls don't," she said. "Frankly, I just can't stand for that." Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Daily Mail
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Aaron Rodgers unloads on trans athletes in stunning rant on Joe Rogan podcast: 'Slap in the face to women'
NFL free agent Aaron Rodgers is the latest to come out against transgender competitors in women's sports, calling their participation a 'slap in the face to women's athletics.' '[The] trans-women movement is actually anti woman 100 percent,' Rodgers told podcaster and friend Joe Rogan. 'You're not seeing trans men dominating anything,' he added. 'No, because there's a biological difference [between men and women.' Rogan agreed, recommending all sports entities do chromosome tests to ensure transgender athletes aren't permitted in women's competitions. 'That's way too much common sense there,' added Rodgers. The two emphatically agreed that their position was not based in bigotry, but rather a desire to see fair competition in women's sports. 'The idea that that's bigoted is so crazy when there's a demonstrable effect like you can clearly see that these people that are identifying as women but are actually biological males have massive advantage,' Rogan said. Rodgers agreed, saying those defending transgender athletes in women's sports 'can't even define what a woman is.' The debate over transgender athletes competing in women's sports has been a hot topic since Lia Thomas' NCAA championship win in 2022. She has since been banned from competing in women's events by World Aquatics. Thomas has challenged the ruling and was denied re-entry into swimming competition last year. The issue has only grown more heated under President Donald Trump. Since his inauguration in January, Trump has signed executive orders requiring the federal government to recognize only two genders and another titled: 'Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports.' Penn swimmer Lia Thomas and Kentucky's Riley Gaines react after finishing tied for 5th in the 200 Freestyle finals at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships on March 18th, 2022 In the latter order, the Trump administration vowed to rescind funding to any institution that permits trans athletes to participate in female sports. Since then, the NCAA has amended its policy and now limits women's sports to student-athletes assigned female at birth. What's more, the Trump administration moved to suspend $175million in funding from Thomas' alma mater, Penn, over their refusal to expunge her records. Rodgers comments on the debate follow those of TNT Sports star Charles Barkley, who called transgender participation in women's sports 'bulls***.' 'Men should not play sports against women. If anybody thinks that, I think they're stupid,' Barkley added. 'I support the gay community 100 percent. I support the transgender community 100 percent.' 'But I do not, under any circumstances… think that men should play sports against women. And if anybody has a problem with that, they're gonna have to get over it because I'm not gonna change my [mind]. I just think it's wrong, period.' 'I don't even think that's controversial… I don't wanna hear you try to explain it to me. No, no, no, I don't wanna hear it. I'm not gonna argue with you. Men shouldn't play sports against woman. I'm done.'
Bloomberg
22-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Macron Talks Up China Ties and Touts Progress on Cognac Probe
France wants to keep building a 'strong economic relationship' with Beijing, President Emmanuel Macron told Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping ahead of a trip to Southeast Asia. 'Chinese investment is welcome in France,' Macron said in a post on X on Thursday following a phone call with Xi. 'But our companies must benefit from fair competition in our two countries, it's a fundamental point.'
