Over the weekend, transgender USA fencer Liz Kocab won the eighth world championship of her career when she took home the title at the 2023 FIE Veteran Fencing World Championships. But not every American was willing to celebrate her triumph as she faced some criticism from former Kentucky Wildcats swimmer Riley Gaines.
Riley Gaines has become sort of an anti-trans activist since her time swimming with Kentucky after she competed against transgender swimmer Lia Thomas. She has continually called out Thomas and other transgender women and stood against their inclusion in sports around the country, and she did it again this week when Kocab won her title.
Following news of Kocab’s most recent championship, Gaines took to social media to express her outrage, calling Kocab “an entitled cheat.”
Liz Kocab (male) wins his 8th Fencing World Championship title…in the women's category
Winning a title as a male in the women's category doesn't make you a champion. It makes you an entitled cheat. pic.twitter.com/9dRNRydtUE
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) October 16, 2023
“Liz Kocab (male) wins his 8th Fencing World Championship title…in the women’s category. Winning a title as a male in the women’s category doesn’t make you a champion. It makes you an entitled cheat,” Gaines said in a post on X, the social media website that was formerly known as Twitter.
This shouldn’t exactly be a shocking message coming from Gaines, but these are still some pretty harsh words coming from her.
