A post shared on social media purports that swimmer and activist Riley Gaines was accepted to compete in the 2024 Olympics while Trans athlete Lia Thomas was rejected.
Riley is headed to the Olympics while Liar Thomas is rejected.
Don’t back down!https://t.co/v7rzZ0CYUS— 𝓛𝓪𝓭𝔂 𝓐𝓵𝓲 𝓢𝓪𝓷𝓰𝓾𝓲𝓼 Author,Editor,Voice (@AliSanguis) November 17, 2023
Verdict: False
The caption is inaccurate. The article stems from a satirical website called SpaceXMania.
Fact Check:
The Miss University pageant will feature two transgender contestants, The New York Post reported. Portugal’s Marina Machete and Rikkie Kolle from the Netherlands are both transgender.
The X post purports that Gaines has been accepted to the United States women’s swim team for the upcoming summer Olympics and Thomas was rejected. The post shares side-by-side images of the two with Gaines pointing at the camera while looking enthused and Thomas looking down and disappointed.
The caption reads, “Riley is headed to the Olympics while Liar Thomas is rejected. Don’t back down!”
The claim is inaccurate. The claim stems from a satirical news outlet called SpaceXMania. The side-by-side of Gaines and Thomas features a logo for SpaceXMania in the bottom left corner. The website features a disclaimer that identifies the site as parody. It states, “Please note that the article under the category ‘SATIRE’ are satirical in nature and are not meant to be taken seriously. These articles are meant to be humorous and are often entirely made up.” (RELATED: Video Of Pakistani Air Force Is Old)
This is not the first piece of misinformation that has been shared online. Check Your Fact debunked a claim 100 Turkish Navy warships have moved toward Gaza.