When Simone Biles enters a debate, she doesn’t just speak. She shakes the ground. After Riley Gaines launched another wave of outrage over transgender athletes, targeting a high school softball player in Minnesota, Biles didn’t hold back. The legendary gymnast delivered a blistering response that instantly lit up social media. But things escalated fast when Gaines used Biles’ trauma to undermine her. Instead of silencing the Olympic champion, it only rallied more voices to her side.
Now, a fellow gymnast from Illinois has stepped in. Not just to defend Biles but to shut down critics who claim she couldn’t compete with men. His message? Biles wouldn’t just compete; she’d win. The Illinois gymnast praised her technique and power and called her the gold standard of the sport, regardless of gender. In a moment when her legacy was questioned, Biles didn’t just answer back.
She inspired a new wave of support that reminded the world why she’s in a league of her own. Speaking on the matter, Samuel Phillips took the side of Simone Biles publicly. Posting on X, Phillips made it clear that with the skills that Biles possesses, she would have easily taken all the men’s medals too! Phillips wrote, “This whole fight between Riley and Simone is NULL & VOID because the basis of the right’s attack is that she would lose medals in the men’s gym category when, in reality, she would STEAL GOLDS from LOTS of the best Male floor and vault workers. So their base is FLAWED.”
This whole fight between Riley and Simone is NULL & VOID because the basis of the right’s attack is that she would lose medals in the men’s gym category when in reality, she would actually STEAL GOLDS from LOTS of the best Male floor and vault workers. So their base is FLAWED.
— Samuel Phillips (@sam_phill1) June 7, 2025
Earlier, the Olympic icon hit back at Gaines with a line that instantly went viral. “Bully someone your own size,” Biles wrote, before adding, “which would ironically be a male.” Such a backlash from Biles soon made the internet sit up and take note. And while she reprimanded Gaines’ take on the matter, Biles had some more words to add.
She doubled down with a second post that took direct aim at Gaines’s ongoing campaign against transgender athletes. “You’re truly sick,” Biles wrote, calling Gaines a “sore loser” whose bitterness over her career had turned into an unhealthy obsession. Rather than tearing others down, Biles urged Gaines to use her platform to create positive change.
Maybe even advocate for a separate transgender category in sports. “One thing’s for sure,” Biles continued, “No one in sports is safe with you around.” Meanwhile, things took a dark turn when Riley Gaines decided to go personal.
Riley Gaines faces backlash after referencing Simone Biles’ testimony
A social media post from former collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines stirred controversy this week after she invoked Simone Biles’ congressional testimony about sexual abuse in a pointed message targeting transgender athletes. Rather than engage directly with Biles’ stance supporting inclusion in women’s sports, Gaines responded on X with a statement that many saw as a deliberate attempt to undermine Biles by referencing her traumatic past.
Gaines posted, “All the horrific sexual abuse @Simone_Biles witnessed and spoke out against was caused by one man, yet she believes women should be forced to strip naked in front of men to validate the man’s feelings. You know how many gold medals you’d have if your ‘inclusive’ dream came true? Zero.”
Alongside the comment, she shared a clip of Biles recounting her experience with the failures of USA Gymnastics in protecting her and other athletes from Larry Nassar, the convicted serial a******. Gaines followed up with a formal statement. It read, “I hope Larry Nassar rots in prison. Gymnasts were failed by a system that protected an abusive man. Men don’t belong in women’s sports. Female athletes are being failed again.”
Such a response sparked a wave of criticism, with many accusing Gaines of weaponizing Biles’ trauma to advance a broader anti-trans narrative. While Biles did not respond directly to Riley Gaines’ post, public reaction largely centered on the perceived insensitivity of tying historic abuse to the ongoing debate about transgender inclusion in sports — a linkage critics say distorts the issue and ignores the distinction between systemic abuse and gender identity.
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