Gaines calls Rapinoe’s support for trans athletes ‘virtue signaling.’

Former Championship Swimmer Slams Megan Rapinoe for Virtue Signaling

Former championship swimmer turned women’s sports advocate, Riley Gaines, has strongly criticized U.S. women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe, accusing her of engaging in “classic virtue signaling.”

In a recent statement, Rapinoe expressed her full support for transgender athletes joining the U.S. Women’s National Team, even if it means replacing a biological woman.

“She’s actually someone who fought for women in sports. She fought for equal pay, she fought for equal access, equal resources — all of those things in comparison to the women’s U.S. national soccer team to the men’s,” Gaines told Fox News Tonight. “Now she is undermining her fight entirely.”

Gaines further criticized Rapinoe, highlighting her retirement announcement earlier in the week, suggesting that her support for transgender athletes is merely an attempt to appear kind and inclusive, while actually being exclusive.

“And notice how earlier this week she announced her retirement. So, she’s done playing. This is a classic case of virtue signaling,” Gaines added. “She wants to be seen as kind. She wants to be seen as inclusive, but it is not inclusive what she’s fighting for — it’s actually exclusive.”

Gaines argued that Rapinoe’s stance on welcoming biological males who identify as females onto women’s teams is detrimental to the very female athletes that women’s sports were created to protect. She emphasized that this issue is not limited to one sport or one country, but rather a global phenomenon that is eroding the integrity of women’s sports.

“It’s happening at every sport, every division, every level, in every state, all across the world, really, in every country. To deny that is entirely disingenuous,” Gaines said, noting that those who disagree are often silenced.

Gaines also criticized Rapinoe for labeling anyone who disagrees with her as bigots or anti-trans, asserting that biology should not be equated with bigotry and that Rapinoe’s rhetoric contributes to silencing opposing viewpoints.

“They are silenced because of messages like Rapinoe’s, who says you’re a bigot if you think this. You’re anti-trans if you think this. Well, that’s not true. Biology is not bigotry, and Megan is a contributing factor in people being silent.”

Gaines expressed her concern for the well-being of female athletes, particularly in physical contact sports like soccer, and questioned how many girls need to suffer before the integrity of women’s sports is restored.

“How many girls have to be exploited in a locker room? How many girls have to lose out on opportunities before people — feminists like Megan Rapinoe — care?” Gaines questioned.

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