{"id":1395916,"date":"2022-03-23T09:45:14","date_gmt":"2022-03-23T13:45:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1395916"},"modified":"2022-03-23T09:46:41","modified_gmt":"2022-03-23T13:46:41","slug":"i-left-there-with-no-trophy-ncaa-female-swimmer-who-tied-for-fifth-with-trans-athlete-says-officials-put-lia-thomas-ahead-of-her","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/i-left-there-with-no-trophy-ncaa-female-swimmer-who-tied-for-fifth-with-trans-athlete-says-officials-put-lia-thomas-ahead-of-her\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018I Left There With No Trophy\u2019: NCAA Female Swimmer Who Tied For Fifth With Trans Athlete Says Officials Put Lia Thomas Ahead Of Her"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">48<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fi-left-there-with-no-trophy-ncaa-female-swimmer-who-tied-for-fifth-with-trans-athlete-says-officials-put-lia-thomas-ahead-of-her%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1395916&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Riley Gaines, a senior at the University of Kentucky, competed in the women\u2019s 200 freestyle on Friday at the NCAA Division I Women\u2019s Championships.<\/p>\n<p>As she touched the wall at the end of the race, Gaines looked up and realized the board said that she had placed fifth \u2014 putting her in the top five collegiate female swimmers in the nation.<\/p>\n<p>Then she realized she\u2019d tied with transgender athlete Lia Thomas, a biological man who identifies as a woman.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_358869\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\">\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-358869\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">ATLANTA, GA \u2013 MARCH 19: Lia Thomas of the University of Pennsylvania Quakers stands behind the blocks prior to the start of the 100 Yard Freestyle during the Division I Women\u2019s Swimming &#038; Diving Championships held at the McAuley Aquatic Center on March 19, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Mike Comer\/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>In a phone interview Tuesday evening, Gaines told The Daily Wire that at that moment she was overcome by a flood of emotions. Happy for her competitors but bewildered, she went back behind the podium where NCAA officials were distributing the awards.<\/p>\n<p>Then a man in an NCAA shirt handing out trophies told her, \u201cHey, I just want to let you know, we only have one fifth place trophy, so yours will be coming in the mail. We went ahead and gave the fifth place trophy to Lia, but you can pose on the podium with the sixth place trophy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That took her aback. She had placed fifth, but they were asking her to give Thomas the moment?<\/p>\n<p>As Thomas and other swimmers looked on, Gaines briefly argued with the official. Then she took her place on the podium, holding the sixth place trophy next to the transgender athlete whom she had tied with.<\/p>\n<p>Now she is willing to speak out.<\/p>\n<h3>\u2018Running My Mouth\u2019<\/h3>\n<p>Images of the dripping wet athletes holding their trophies after the race show Thomas, who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/sports\/2022\/03\/17\/lia-thomas-ncaa-swimming-championships\/\">stands<\/a> at 6 feet 1 inch, towering over Gaines\u2019 5\u20195\u2033 frame.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOk that\u2019s fine, she worked hard, just like I worked hard, there\u2019s no question there,\u201d Gaines said she told the official as she argued with him. \u201cBut can I ask why she gets the fifth place trophy before I do? Especially last night, she just won the national title.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_358867\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-358867\" class=\"wp-image-358867 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239310361-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1707\" height=\"2560\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239310361-scaled-1.jpg 1707w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239310361-200x300-1.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239310361-384x576-1.jpg 384w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239310361-768x1152-1.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239310361-1024x1536-1.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239310361-1366x2048-1.jpg 1366w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239310361-1360x2040-1.jpg 1360w\" \/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-358867\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">ATLANTA, GA \u2013 MARCH 18: University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas and Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines react after finishing tied for 5th in the 200 Freestyle finals at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships. (Photo by Rich von Biberstein\/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The official told her that they gave out the awards in chronological order, perhaps referencing the lanes the athletes swam in. The NCAA has not addressed this point to The Daily Wire.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI just want you to know that we respect you and admire your swim so much, but we just want Lia to hold the fifth place trophy,\u201d he responded, according to Gaines, who laughed incredulously to The Daily Wire as she repeated his words.<\/p>\n<p>At this point, Gaines said she was getting really frustrated. She was also still out of breath from her race.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was probably running my mouth a little more than I should,\u201d she said. \u201cI told the guy, \u2018I don\u2019t think that\u2019s that\u2019s right, and I don\u2019t think that\u2019s fair. There\u2019s no dispute that only one of us can hold the trophy, but I think given the circumstances, you\u2019re just trying to save face a little bit.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was a bit disheartening,\u201d she said. \u201cIt really was.\u00a0I left the pool with no trophy. Not a big deal, but it was the goal that I had set all year.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The University of Kentucky swimmer said that she wasn\u2019t the only one who was upset \u2014 her athletic director was pretty upset that she had to leave the pool without her trophy.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe more I thought about it, the more it fired me up,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s almost like the NCAA is trying to save face by giving Lia the fifth place trophy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho are we trying to protect here,\u201d she questioned, \u201cand who are we trying to fight for here?\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>\u2018She Had Tears In Her Eyes\u2019<\/h3>\n<p>Thomas, who would go on to finish in 8th place Saturday evening in the 100 freestyle final, has drawn nationwide backlash for swimming and competing on a women\u2019s team after <a href=\"https:\/\/pennathletics.com\/sports\/mens-swimming-and-diving\/roster\/lia-thomas\/19457\">racing with men<\/a> for three years.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt means the world to be here \u2026 I try to ignore it as much as I can,\u201d Thomas <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-sports\/story\/_\/id\/33529775\/amid-protests-pennsylvania-swimmer-lia-thomas-becomes-first-known-transgender-athlete-win-division-national-championship\">told ESPN<\/a> after winning the 500 freestyle. \u201cI try to focus on my swimming, what I need to do to get ready for my races. And just try to block out everything else.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Gaines believes the NCAA went into the championships being \u201coverly sensitive about\u201d Thomas, well aware of the criticism, and fearful of incurring any backlash about its treatment of the transgender swimmer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s almost like they\u2019re trying to back [transgender athletes] more than\u202690 to 95 % of the rest of the swimmers who are kind of bummed by and affected by the rules that were in place for Lia to swim,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_358873\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-358873\" class=\"wp-image-358873 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239328669-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239328669-scaled-1.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239328669-300x200-1.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239328669-864x576-1.jpg 864w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239328669-768x512-1.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239328669-1536x1024-1.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239328669-2048x1365-1.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239328669-1800x1200-1.jpg 1800w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/GettyImages-1239328669-1200x800-1.jpg 1200w\" \/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-358873\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">ATLANTA, GA \u2013 MARCH 19: Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines swims the 200 Butterfly prelims at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships on March 19th, 2022 at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Rich von Biberstein\/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Virginia Tech swimmer Reka Gyorgy <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/that-final-spot-was-taken-from-me-because-of-the-ncaas-decision-swimmer-unleashes-on-ncaa-for-allowing-a-biological-male-in-her-race\">spoke out Sunday,<\/a> after\u00a0days of silence from most female athletes at the championships, releasing a letter she sent to the NCAA \u201cin hopes that the NCAA will open their eyes and change these rules in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt doesn\u2019t promote our sport in a good way and I think it is disrespectful against the biologically female swimmers who are competing in the NCAA,\u201d wrote Gyorgy.<\/p>\n<p>The Virginia Tech swimmer swam the 500 free at the NCAA\u2019s on Thursday where she placed 17th \u2014 meaning that she did not make it back to the finals and was a first alternate.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><i>\u201cI know you could say I had the opportunity to swim faster and make the top 16, but this situation makes it a bit different and I can\u2019t help but<\/i> <em>be angry or sad,\u201d wrote Gyorgy. \u201cIt hurts me, my team, and other women in the pool. One spot was taken away from the girl who got 9th in the 500 free and didn\u2019t make it back to the A final preventing her from being an All-American. Every event that transgender athletes competed in was one spot taken away from biological females throughout the meet.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Gaines told The Daily Wire that she and Gyorgy stood next to one another as they watched the final heat of the 500 freestyle on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen Lia touched the wall, and [Reka] realized that she got 17th, the first thing she said to me was, \u2018Wow, I can\u2019t believe I just got beat by someone who probably wasn\u2019t even trying their hardest.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt just broke my heart,\u201d the University of Kentucky swimmer said. \u201cShe had tears in her eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Gaines repeatedly emphasized that she is in no way trying to bash Thomas, noting that Thomas is really \u201cnot the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am in full support of her and full support of her transition and her swimming career and everything like that,\u201d insisted Gaines, \u201cbecause there\u2019s no doubt that she works hard too, but she\u2019s just abiding by the rules that the NCAA put in place, and that\u2019s the issue.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The University of Kentucky swimmer is unsure whether any of the female athletes have broached the topic with Thomas. Gaines said she briefly chatted with Thomas about their race, both acknowledging how hard the competition was.<\/p>\n<h3>Lia Thomas In The Locker Room<\/h3>\n<p>Thomas not only competed in women\u2019s races \u2014 Gaines said that the transgender swimmer also used the female athletes\u2019 locker room, publicly changing in the corner.<\/p>\n<p>Pressed how she felt about this, Gaines said it was \u201cdefinitely not something\u201d that she personally was \u201centhused about.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe first day I got there, I was in the locker room changing, and then she came in, and it just kind of got silent,\u201d Gaines explained.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEveryone in the locker room, I think, was kind of stunned,\u201d she added, noting that \u201cno one really looked or anything like that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt is rightful for people to be a little stunned and not just because of her, because people are judging her, but because it was such a controversial topic. I mean, it\u2019s something everyone was curious about. And so I think it kind of just took people by surprise,\u201d added Gaines.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s the first I had ever experienced something like this,\u201d the swimmer added.<\/p>\n<p>The NCAA has not responded to requests for comment on this point.<\/p>\n<p>Gaines said she told herself going into the meet that she would not say anything. But she struggled with staying quiet.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI like to stay true to what I believe in, and I\u2019m not someone who\u2019s just going to back down from anything or agree with something I don\u2019t agree with,\u201d she said. \u201cIf this was something other athletes weren\u2019t going to step up and speak up about, I guess I could be that person.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Gaines admitted that she thought other people would speak up before her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut throughout the meet you still weren\u2019t really hearing anything from anyone who weren\u2019t OK with it,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd there were so many girls who I knew were not OK with the things that have been happening and who were directly impacted.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd so it just blew my mind, honestly, that there could be so many girls there who were bothered or affected personally\u2026by Lia but they still didn\u2019t say anything. But I think there\u2019s outside factors that go into that as well,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n<h3>Moving Forward<\/h3>\n<p>What does Gaines want the NCAA to do to rectify the situation? She says that the NCAA probably didn\u2019t have a ton of time this year to come up with some \u201cgreat clear-cut solution.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut what I\u2019m not OK with is that they were able to just turn their backs on all of the biological females, not even just in swimming, but in all NCAA sports, just to kind of appease a small minority.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTitle IX has been around for 50 years,\u201d she added. \u201cThe NCAA was even passing around Title IX shirts and on the back of the shirts it said equity, fairness. And I just thought it was a bit ironic that you preach one thing but do another.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Next time, before the NCAA bends their standards to appease one person, Gaines hopes the association will \u201ctake into consideration all the girls who worked so hard to become an all-American, score points for their team, have another chance of going their best time in finals.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe need to create fair boundaries that protect the integrity of women in sports,\u201d the swimmer said firmly.<\/p>\n<p><em>The Daily Wire is one of America\u2019s fastest growing conservative media companies for breaking news, investigative reporting, sports, podcasts, in-depth analysis, books, and entertainment for a reason: because we believe in what we do. We believe in our country, in the value of truth and the freedom to speak it, and in the right to challenge tyranny wherever we see it. Believe the same? <a class=\"in-cell-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/subscribe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Become a member now and join our mission.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Riley Gaines, a senior at the University of Kentucky, competed in the women\u2019s 200 freestyle on Friday at the NCAA Division I Women\u2019s Championships.As she touched the wall at the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":496,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1395916","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1395916","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/496"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1395916"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1395916\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1395916"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1395916"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1395916"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}