Gay Olympic ice skater Adam Rippon has fiery argument with Lance Armstrong about trans women in sports on Mars space colony reality show – and reminds cycling champ of his own cheating

Retired gay Olympic skater Adam Rippon has attacked Lance Armstrong on a new Fox television series in an argument over trans women.

The 33-year-old figure skater hit back at the former cyclist after he voiced his opinion that trans athletes deserve their own division, completely separate from men’s and women’s sports.

The two athletes had appeared together on a series titled “Stars on Mars,” a show where celebrities compete to see who could survive the simulated living conditions on Mars.

Tellingly, Rippon said Armstrong’s opinion should not have been brought up Cinema mix: “I don’t really think Lance Armstrong is someone who really needs to worry about the fairness of the competition.

“We’re trying to navigate that conversation without trying to address this big elephant in the room and say, ‘You’re a cheater.’ What are you worried about?’

Rippon referred to Armstrong’s infamous doping scandal that stripped him of his seven Tour de France titles.

Shortly after their exchange, Armstrong voluntarily agreed to leave the show, saying he felt isolated.

Rippon added, “Trans athletes in sports are such a hot topic to talk about. And actually there is still so much to talk about.

And more research needs to be done. But I believe if we want this research, and we want to paint a clear picture of what it means to have transgender people in sports, we need to give them the opportunity to do this research in sports.

“There are no studies possible if you constantly and permanently discourage trans athletes from participating. There is no conversation to be had. I think that’s why it’s so important.’

Rippon is a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community and announced his retirement from skating in 2018 after taking home bronze at South Korea’s Winter Olympics.

Many states have passed their own laws to prevent trans athletes from participating in girls’ and women’s sports.

According to the Movement promotion projectthere are 23 states that have implemented laws prohibiting transgender students from participating in sports consistent with their gender identity.

In April, new legislation was passed in the House of Representatives that allowed states to introduce bans.

No Democrats have joined Republicans in voting for the bill, as they have placed transgender athletes in the crosshairs of their culture war.

Since then, more than a dozen Republican-led states have enacted transgender sports bans. Republicans have also pushed for a ban on gender transition care for minors.

Biden hit back with a proposal from the Department of Education that “categorically” excluding a transgender girl from women’s sports would make a Title IX violation.

However, it would allow universities and elementary schools to exclude transgender women, allowing them to compete, undermining fairness or potentially leading to sports-related injuries.

The topic first came to light after University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas, who had competed on the men’s swim team, switched genders and joined the women’s team.

She became the first transgender woman to win an NCAA swimming championship.

One of her opponents, Riley Gaines, has since become a leading voice against the inclusion of transgender athletes in women’s sports.

Gaines had competed after tied for fifth place against trans swimmer Thomas at last year’s NCAA Championship.

She previously said the experience of racing with Thomas, who raced in the men’s competition until 2019, “made me feel like I went into the race with my hands tied behind my back.”

Other athletes, including Martina Navratilova, Inga Thompson and Paula Scanlan, have begun a battle to prevent transgender women from competing with biological women in sports.

Earlier this week, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre evaded a question when asked if President Biden believes biological men should be able to compete with female athletes.

Instead, she repeatedly called the matter “complicated” and made it clear that there were differing opinions on the subject.

“It’s a complicated issue,” she said in one of several variants of her answer, without taking a clear position.

Pierre was asked about Republican former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, who has highlighted transgender participation in sports as a campaign issue.

She was asked about Haley’s statement that “the idea of ​​biological boys playing in girls’ sports is the women’s issue of our time,” and whether or not Biden agrees that it is a women’s rights issue.

Pierre replied, ‘So we’ve talked about this a lot… It’s a complicated issue. And there are many different views.’

A reporter pointed to Biden’s granddaughters and asked if he thinks it’s fair for girls to compete with biological men. Biden himself was a college athlete and played football at the University of Delaware.