Riley Gaines was among the 16 current and former female athletes who filed a lawsuit against the NCAA on Thursday, saying the organization’s transgender policy violates Title IX.
Gaines, an OutKick contributor who hosts the “Gaines for Girls” podcast and is the director of the Riley Gaines Center at the Leadership Institute, explained why it was time for them to take action against the organization.
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Riley Gaines attends the premiere of “Lady Ballers” on Nov. 29, 2023, in Nashville, Tennessee. (Jason Davis/Getty Images for Bentkey Ventures)
“It was time someone took action. I thought to myself for so long, ‘I wish someone would sue,’” the former Kentucky swimmer said on “OutKick The Morning.” “That’s how we win, someone has to sue – never once occurring to me that I could be a part of this, I could really help spearhead this along with ICONS and 15 other athletes that signed onto this lawsuit.”
“I realized, [it is] us. We can fight back. It’s what the left does so well. The other side, they throw around lawsuits like it’s nothing. The ACLU has no problem suing. [Attorney General] Letita James in New York, of course she’s sue-happy. … The other side has no problem suing.”
“It is time that we fight back, and we’ve seen this. We’ve seen a slew of de-transitioners who are now suing their doctors or their health care providers or state statutes that allowed them to be deceived and taken advantage of.”
Former collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines is sworn in during a House Oversight subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill on Dec. 5, 2023. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
“The tides are going to turn because ultimately this movement is driven by dollar signs. It is driven by money. People act out of a fear of not getting sued and by taking the actions that we have now. We are showing them that the other side is just as willing and just as capable to sue as they believe the trans rights activists would be to sue.”
The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.
Then-University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines reacts after finishing tied for 5th with transgender University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas in the 200-meter freestyle final during the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships on March 18, 2022, at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta. (Rich von Biberstein/Getty Images)
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Reka Gyorgy, Kylee Alons, Kaitlynn Wheeler, Ainsley Erzen, Ellie Eades, Lily Mullens, Suzanna Price, Carter Satterfield, Kate Pearson, Katie Blankenship, Julianna Morrow and athletes identified as Swimmer A, Swimmer B, Track Athlete A and Volleyball Athlete A were among the plaintiffs in the case.
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