Female Cycling Champion Retires From The Sport After Having To Race Against Transgender Women
Hannah Arensman is an American cyclist who has won 35 times on the national cyclocross circuit, but she is retiring from the sport due to transgender women (biological men) entering races.
Arsensman's decision to retire due to the emergence of transgender cyclists was shared in an amicus brief filed to the Supreme Court last week. The timing of her retirement is noteworthy as she came to the decision after finishing fourth place in between two transgender females in a race.
"I have decided to end my cycling career. At my last race at the recent UCI Cyclocross National Championships in the elite women’s category in December 2022, I came in 4th place, flanked on either side by male riders awarded 3rd and 5th places. My sister and family sobbed as they watched a man finish in front of me, having witnessed several physical interactions with him throughout the race."
READ: TRANSGENDER WOMAN WINS FEMALE CYCLING EVENT IN NYC, THE 16TH VICTORY OF THE 46-YEAR-OLD MAN’S CAREER
The brief that revealed Arsenman's retirement plans was filed in support of the state of West Virginia and its Save Women’s Sports law. As Fox News notes, "the legislation seeks to keep transgender student-athletes at all level of competition to play against those with the same biological gender instead of the gender they identify as."
"A preliminary injunction dissolved in January when a federal judge ruled the law did not violate Title IX protections but the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled to reinstate a preliminary injunction."
Hannah Arensman: Female Athletes No Longer Have A Fair Chance At Competing
Arensman, along with 66 other athletes and coaches, have called on the Supreme Court to vacate the preliminary injunction.
She acknowledges that young girls and women no longer have a fair shot at competing when they're having to go head-to-head with biological men.
"Moving forward, I feel for young girls learning to compete and who are growing up in a day when they no longer have a fair chance at being the new record holders and champions in cycling because men want to compete in our division."
"I have felt deeply angered, disappointed, overlooked, and humiliated that the rule makers of women’s sports do not feel it is necessary to protect women’s sports to ensure fair competition for women anymore."