Riley Gaines responds to HRC president's comment about men against female tennis champion
Riley Gaines reacted to a Democrat witness's comments about men being unable to beat tennis champions Serena Williams during a Senate hearing
Former NCAA swim star Riley Gaines slammed the president of far-left Human Rights Campaign for denying the biological advantages of male athletes in a Wednesday Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.
Kelley Robinson, who describes herself as the first queer, Black president of the Human Rights Campaign, claimed that tennis legend Serena Williams could beat men at the sport at the hearing on "Protecting Pride: Defending the Civil Rights of LGBTQ+ Americans."
University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines reacts after finishing tied for fifth with transgender University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas in the 200-freestyle finals at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships on March 18, 2022, in Atlanta. (Rich von Biberstein)
"There's been this news article about men that think they can beat Serena Williams in tennis," Robinson said. "And it's just not the case. She is stronger than them."
Gaines, a University of Kentucky 12-time All-American swimmer who tied with transgender swimmer Lia Thomas, immediately shut down Robinson's claim: "Both Serena and Venus lost to the 203rd ranked male tennis player."
RILEY GAINES SLAMS NCAA FOR ALLOWING LIA THOMAS TO COMPETE AT CHAMPIONSHIPS IN EMOTIONAL TESTIMONY
Riley Gaines (Fox News)
Fifty-year-old Karsten Braasch challenged and beat Serena Williams and Venus Williams back-to-back at the 1998 Australian Open after the sisters claimed they could beat any male player outside the world's top 200.
Serena Williams, a 39-time Grand Slam champion, has said male tennis player Andy Murray, a three-time grand slam winner, could beat her "6-0, 6-0 in 5 to 6 minutes."
"It’s true. It’s completely different sport," Williams told David Letterman in 2013. "The men are a lot faster, they serve harder, they hit harder. It’s a completely different game. I love to play women’s tennis. I only want to play girls because I don’t want to be embarrassed."
Serena Williams in action against Elena Rybakina during the fourth round of Roland Garros on June 6, 2021, in Paris. (Robert Prange/Getty Images)
RILEY GAINES MOCKS MESSAGE APPARENTLY SENT TO HARVARD SWIM TEAM ABOUT LIA THOMAS
Robinson told Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., she would "not definitively" say males have an athletic advantage over females.
The queer activist wasn't the only witness to deny biological reality at the hearing.
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Dr. Ximena Lopez, a pediatric endocrinologist who has provided transgender procedures to children for more than 10 years, said she could not answer if males are naturally stronger than women, saying she is not a sports medicine physician.
"As a medical professional, I don't have the scientific expertise to provide an opinion," she told Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C, during the hearing.
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