A pair of transgender women won gold and silver in a female cycle race in Illinois over the weekend – and it’s not the first time they have finished ahead of biological women.
Tessa Johnson and Evelyn Williamson, who were both born male, beat out all the opposition at the Illinois State Cyclocross Championships on Saturday and the news sparked anger from female sports advocates and political commentators.
Johnson and Williamson stood on the podium as first- and second-place winners, respectively, in the women’s singlespeed category, while Kristin Chalmers, a biological woman, was relegated to the third spot.
Johnson also took first place in the women’s category 1/2 race, earning $150 in prize money.
Bikes on Roof Rack. (Jean-Yves Ruszniewski/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images)
Both Johnson and Williamson have been racing in women’s cycling for years, with Williamson collecting 18 first-place titles in races across the country since 2017, according to Reduxx, a women’s rights news site.
The pair also clinched gold and silver in the Chicago Cyclocross Cup series in October, again leaving a biological female in third. Cyclocross races take place on difficult terrain such as mud and sand and riders often have to dismount and run with their bikes.
News of the results and a picture of the pair atop the podium on Sunday drew sharp criticism on X.
Tennis legend Martina Navratilova, who has railed against transgenders competing against women in sports wrote, “[M]ore mediocre male bodies taking podium places from female athletes. And it stinks!!!!”
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Journalist Piers Morgan was also appalled, writing, “[I]t’s so outrageous. Why aren’t more women standing up against this assault on their rights?”
Riley Gaines, a former 12-time All-American swimmer at the University of Kentucky and an advocate of keeping biological men out of women’s sports, offered to compensate female cyclists who boycott USA Cycling competitions.
Riley Gaines has been an outspoken critic of trans women competing against biological females. (Reuters/Go Nakamura)
“Any woman who concedes and doesn’t compete, I will personally pay them the prize money they’re missing out on,” Gaines wrote.
“Stop participating in the farce,” she wrote.
Gaines’ offers came weeks after a female pool player in the U.K. forfeited her final match because she was drawn to compete against a transgender woman.
Chicago CrossCup, which organized Sunday’s cycle races, says on its website that it follows USA Cycling’s Transgender Athlete Participation policies for all of its races.
Martina Navratilova at the U.S. Open Tennis Championship in 2022 in New York City. Navratilova said the situation on Sunday “stinks.” (Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images)
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“Discrimination or harassment of any kind on the basis of race, color, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identification… or any other stupid idea someone comes up with to belittle others will not be tolerated at CCC events and may result in disqualification and/or being asked to leave,” the website reads.
In July, Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the world governing body for sports cycling, updated its policy, banning transgender athletes from elite competition.
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