Aug 6, 2026 · 1h 19m
Riley Gaines built a movement on one disputed race
What Is Riley Gaines Hiding? (PTFO Vault)
The episode tests how a fifth-place tie became a national campaign while examining the networks, legal strategy, and allegations surrounding Gaines’s advocacy.
- 1Gaines’s tie with Lia Thomas became the origin story for a rapidly expanding anti-trans political movement.
- 2Conservative donors, nonprofits, media roles, and litigation helped turn Gaines’s message into an organized national campaign.
- 3Former teammates’ allegations against coach Lars Jorgensen expose a sharp contrast between Gaines’s public rhetoric and private response.
Don't miss
Former teammates’ allegations against Lars Jorgensen collide with Gaines’s continued praise of him and her claims about threats posed by trans athletes.
The brief
Madison Pauly joins Pablo Torre to reconstruct Riley Gaines’s rise from Kentucky swimmer to nationally prominent anti-trans activist, beginning with the 2022 NCAA championship tie that became her defining political story.
Former teammates describe a Kentucky swim culture marked by punishment swims, body-shaming, excessive practices, and pressure around injuries—accounts that contrast with Gaines’s memoir, Swimming Against the Current.
The episode traces how Gaines’s locker-room claims escalated into sexual-assault rhetoric, then connected with Republican campaigns, conservative media, donor networks, and litigation seeking permanent restrictions on trans athletes.
Bill Bock, the Riley Gaines Center, and ICONS appear in a broader legal and funding network whose Title IX strategy could affect transgender rights well beyond competitive sports.
The sharpest contradiction arrives when former teammates discuss allegations against coach Lars Jorgensen, whom Gaines continued calling a fantastic coach while condemning trans athletes as threats to women’s safety.
Trinity Ward’s closing perspective reframes the episode: public fixation on a fifth-place tie may obscure more serious allegations involving the coach shared by Gaines and her teammates.
Featuring
Riley Gaines
Lia ThomasBooks & mentions
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