Martina Navratilova endorses Riley Gaines' advocacy against the inclusion of trans athletes in women's sports during House subcommittee hearing

Martina Navratilova has endorsed former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines' testimony advocating against the inclusion of transgender athletes in women's sports.

On Tuesday, February 5, the House Subcommittee for Healthcare and Financial Services conducted a hearing titled "The Importance of Protecting Female Athletics and Title IX."

This hearing was prompted by the proposed changes to Title IX by the Biden administration, which aim to broaden the definition of sexual discrimination to include gender identity. This can potentially make way for transgender athletes to take part in women's sports.

Riley Gaines, who has been a prominent advocate against the inclusion of trans athletes in women's sports, testified before the subcommittee and firmly reiterated her stance on this matter.

Drawing from her personal experience of competing alongside trans swimmer Lia Thomas, Gaines highlighted the broader challenge of this issue across various sports. She argued that such inclusivity was "unfair" to women.

"Unfortunately, Thomas was not a one-off. Across the country and in various sports, males are entering women’s athletic competitions, being given spots on women’s teams, and being granted entry to our locker rooms. Common-sense Americans know intuitively that this is not fair to women," she said.

The 23-year-old also cited scientific studies that indicated that male bodies held a significant advantage over females.

"Science supports that instinct. In fact, studies consistently show male bodies have about a 10% athletic advantage over female bodies. This gap is evident in almost every sport and at every level of competition," she added.

Gaines went on to say that schools knowingly allowing biological males to participate in women's sports were actively depriving women of athletic opportunities.

"A school that knowingly allows a male athlete to take a spot on a women's team or allows a male athlete to take the field in a women's game is denying a female student athletic opportunity, and that is sex-based discrimination and it violates Title IX regardless of what the new regulations might say," she said.

Martina Navratilova endorsed Gaines' remarks on social media, stating:

"Right on Riley!!! By including male bodies in women’s sports, when they all could compete in men’s sports, you are excluding a girl or a female from a team, from a podium etc," Martina Navratilova posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Martina Navratilova stands firm on stance against trans athletes' inclusion in women's sports

Martina Navratilova

Martina Navratilova has not shied away from advocating against the inclusion of trans athletes in women's sports. She recently reiterated her belief that female athletes deserved to compete on a level playing field.

"We are not against trans athletes. We are for women athletes to compete on as level a playing field as possible, which means the males who now identify as women, should compete in a male category and women who identify as men but don't take testosterone can compete as women," Martina Navratilova said on the On With Kara Swisher Podcast.

While the 18-time Grand Slam champion expressed her support for transgender rights on a civil level, she maintained her opposition to male bodies competing alongside women.

"Because there is still no advantage physically over other women athletes. I'm all for trans rights on a civil level, a hundred percent. And this is not against trans athletes. This is against male bodies competing as women if they identify as women," she added.

Martina Navratilova went on to outline various attributes of the male physique that contribute to their competitive edge over female athletes.