In Springfield, Illinois, sixteen-year-old swimmer Abbigail Wheeler, a swimmer on the Springfield YMCA SPY swim team, entered the girls' locker room to change when she noticed a couple of transgender individuals sitting there, as reported by Fox News.
Abbigail Wheeler says she was kicked off the YMCA SPY swim team after she and a teammate put up signs reading "Women’s Rights," "Biological Women Only," and "SafeSport" to alert other girls that biological males were in the area.
"I went to my coach and gladly told him that I was a part of this, and he said that it was probably not the best option for me to swim with the swim team that night and that the YMCA staff would follow up with my family."
However, the local YMCA chapter communications director says that Wheeler left the team on her own, writing, "There have been a variety of false statements around the same issues circulated by the same individuals since the past May. In this version of the story, the statements that the swimmer was removed from the Y and prevented from participating in the swim team is false. She left the swim team and the YMCA on her own."
This is the latest example of females voicing concerns about males transitioning to transgender females taking over biological females and their sports. Riley Gaines, a former swimmer for the University of Kentucky, has been outspoken on this issue and believes transgender females should not be allowed to participate in female sports due to biological unfairness. She believes transgender females are ruining opportunities for biological females to earn scholarships, podium finishes, and championships in their respective sports.
Ms. Gaines competed against University of Penn swimmer Lia Thomas, a transgender swimmer who transitioned from male to female. Ms. Gaines praised Ms. Wheeler and her actions, stating "To be only 16 years old and being in the position that you're in, faced with what you were faced with and standing up for yourself and ultimately standing up for others. You are a megaphone for your teammates."
The local YMCA stated that Ms. Wheeler left the swim team and facility on her own accord. Her coach, Mr. Totura, told her no action could be taken against the transgender athletes using the female locker rooms.
Alex Patterson is a Thomas M. Cooley Law School graduate and works for the City of Springfield as a paralegal. He played football for seventeen years as an offensive and defensive lineman. He graduated from Lindenwood University-Belleville in 2018 with a Bachelor’s in Sports Management. He can be followed on Twitter @alpatt71.
