MAGA influencer Charlie Kirk has been widely mocked online after attempting to attack Olympic gymnast Simone Biles in a bizarre online feud over transgender athletes.
The drama began when anti-trans activist Riley Gaines lashed out at a high school softball team that included a transgender player. After the team celebrated its championship win online, Gaines mocked the players and misgendered the trans athlete, writing: “Comments off lol. To be expected when your star player is a boy.”
In response, 11-time Olympic medallist Simone Biles didn’t hold back. “You’re truly sick,” she replied to Gaines. “All of this campaigning because you lost a race. Straight up sore loser… No one in sports is safe with you around!”
Biles also suggested a more constructive approach: “You should be uplifting the trans community and perhaps finding a way to make sports inclusive — OR creating a new avenue where trans [people] feel safe in sports. Maybe a transgender category in all sports!”
💬 Charlie Kirk Gets Dragged Online
Rather than staying out of it, right-wing figure Charlie Kirk jumped to Gaines’ defence, tweeting: “Unlike you, Riley never quit when things got hard” — an apparent jab at Biles’ withdrawal from several events during the Tokyo 2020 Olympics due to “the twisties,” a dangerous mental block that made it unsafe for her to compete. (She returned to competition in 2024 and added even more medals to her collection.)
Kirk’s comparison backfired almost immediately, with critics pointing out that:
- Biles is one of the most decorated athletes in history.
- Gaines tied for fifth place at her highest achievement and has not competed since college.
- Kirk himself dropped out of a community college and has no competitive sports background.
💻 The Internet Responds: “Sit This One Out, Charlie”
Users on X were quick to mock Kirk’s failed attempt at a clapback:
“Imagine dropping out of community college and then tweeting this to an ELEVEN time Olympic Medallist over a fifth place swimmer…” – @yblehsss
“Big Head literally quit swimming to start grifting ’cause she placed 5th. Simone took a break and came back to win even more.” – @n11111111ck
“You’re trying to elevate someone who walked away from the sport and now spends her days calling out teenagers, while tearing down one of the most decorated and mentally resilient athletes in history.” – @CriticalReader7
One user summed it up:
“Unlike Riley, Simone built her career off of winning rather than losing.”
🏊 Gaines’ Career: Built on Fifth Place
Gaines has risen to prominence in far-right circles after tying with trans swimmer Lia Thomas for fifth in the 200-yard freestyle at the 2022 NCAA Championships. Despite four cisgender swimmers finishing ahead of them both, Gaines has repeatedly claimed she was robbed of a title, and built a public persona around opposing trans inclusion in women’s sports.
Gaines responded to Biles’ comments by doubling down:
“It’s not my job or the job of any woman to figure out how to include men in our spaces… Men don’t belong in women’s sports and I say that with my full chest.”
Her stance continues to be divisive, with critics accusing her of using trans athletes as scapegoats to excuse her own shortcomings in competition.
