Appalling: Rip Curl DROPS Bethany Hamilton in favor of trans surfer



Many will fondly remember Bethany Hamilton from the memoir and 2011 film adaptation “Soul Surfer” – the true story of Hamilton’s recovery and faith-based journey to return to professional surfing after losing her arm in a shark attack.

Hamilton has been an inspiration to millions for her courage and resilience in the face of tragedy and hardship.

In 1999 when she was just 9 years old, Bethany signed with popular Australian surfing brand Rip Curl and has been a central figure for the brand since.

However, that 24-year relationship just ended in November 2023, when Hamilton spoke out against the World Surfing League’s new policy that would permit men to compete in women’s surfing divisions as long as their testosterone levels were below a certain level.

"I personally think that the best solution would be to create a different division so that all can have a fair opportunity to showcase their passion and talent," Hamilton stated in a video, being careful also to say that she loves and supports everyone.

But the mere suggestion that trans-identifying men should have their own division to protect the integrity of women’s sports was enough to get her dropped from the label and replaced with trans surfer Sasha Jane Lowerson.

“I’m fired up about this,” says Allie Beth Stuckey, who thinks Hamilton deserves “kudos” for “using her platform … to speak up on behalf of women.”

“Even if you go through estrogen therapy, even if you change your name, you grow your hair, you start wearing a skirt and lipstick, you're still a man, [and] you will always be a man. The fact that you went through male puberty means that you will have a physical advantage when it comes to athletics,” says Allie.

Not only is Lowerson clearly a biological man – “you see the jaw, you see the shoulders, you see the biceps, you see the chest,” says Allie – but he was also a professional athlete before his transition, giving him an undeniable advantage in the women’s surfing division.

In one picture, Lowerson poses holding a first-place trophy next to his female competitors, and it’s obvious “how much bigger he is than these other women.”

Further, according to Allie, it seems that what Lowerson is really dealing with is well beyond gender dysphoria.

“If you look at this person's social media, you can see that this is a fetish for him; you can see the kind of sexualized pictures that he is posting of himself” revealing that he “sees womanhood as objectification,” says Allie.

“I don’t know if that’s the case with [Lowerson], but it certainly looks to be the case if you look at his social media,” which features several highly sexualized images.

To hear more about Sasha Jane Lowerson and how other athletes, including professional swimmer Riley Gaines, are responding to the situation, watch the video below.


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Transgender surfer trounces female competitors in surfing contest in Australia



Transgender surfer Sasha Jane Lowerson, a biological male, recently defeated female competitors at the West Coast Suspensions Longboard and Logger State Championships in Australia.

Lowerson took first place in the Open Women's Longboard and Open Women's Logger divisions, according to Surfing WA.

The transgender surfer trounced the competition, scoring 14.70 in the Open Women's Longboard, compared to the second-place finisher's score of just 10.63 — likewise, Lowerson's 13.97 in the Open Women's Logger dwarfed the runner up's 11.37.

"To be the first transgender woman competing in surfing hasn’t been an easy ride emotionally but the amount of support I’ve been showed has been phenomenal and I’m so grateful to be involved, welcomed and embraced within the longboard community in Australia," Lowerson said, according to Surfing WA.

"It was an amazing experience, with great waves. I surfed an amazing, perfect point break with three other women," Lowerson said, according to the Inertia.

In the past, Lowerson had competed in men's surfing as Ryan Egan. Lowerson began "a medical transition" at the beginning of 2021, the surfer said on a podcast.

"Well, it wasn’t the first event I’ve competed in as a female," Lowerson said, according to the Inertia. "I competed in the Noosa Festival of Surfing in March. So that was technically the first time a trans athlete had ever competed in surfing. And there was no hoo haa then, because there was nothing to talk about. I came 10th. I was surfing against some of the best longboard women in the world, and they schooled me.

"With this event, though, I was a bigger fish in a smaller pond, and there are going to be naysayers as soon as you win one. Unfortunately, when a trans athlete is successful a lot of people want to jump up and down. But there are also a lot of people that want to celebrate it, which is a positive thing," Lowerson said.

  

Taylor Silverman, a female skateboarder, recently spoke out about losing to a transgender competitor.

Lia Thomas, a biological male who swam for the University of Pennsylvania's women's team, previously made headlines while winning various competitions against female competitors.

"The very simple answer is that I’m not a man," Thomas told Sports Illustrated. "I'm a woman, so I belong on the women’s team. Trans people deserve that same respect every other athlete gets."