Not insufferable anti-trans “activist” Riley Gaines saying she’s “absolutely” down to work with Simone Biles! Given who Riley is and everything that’s gone down between her and Simone recently, I seriously doubt that’s ever gonna happen.

If you’re unfamiliar with Riley, she’s a former swimmer turned professional “protect women’s sports” crusader known for her relentless campaign to exclude trans women from athletics at every level. When she made offensive remarks about a teenage transgender softball player earlier this month, Simone called out her bullshit, and thus, a very intense social media feud began. Things escalated to the point where Simone deactivated her X account on June 23.

Despite their heated back-and-forth, Riley still desperately wants Simone as her ally; in a new interview with TMZ, she explained why she still really wants to work with the record-breaking Olympian. Here’s a full breakdown of the Riley Gaines and Simone Biles feud, plus Riley’s recent comments about potentially “teaming up” with Simone. Sigh.

Riley Gaines And Simone Biles Feud, Explained

A Breakdown Of Riley Gaines And Simone Biles’ Intense Social Media Exchange

Image Credit: Getty

It all started on June 6, when Riley left a cruel comment on a post from the Minnesota State High School League, celebrating its first softball state championship win. “Comments off lol,” Riley wrote on X. “To be expected when your star player is a boy.” (She seemed to be referring to Marissa Rothenberger, a trans pitcher on the team.)

Simone tweeted a passionate response to Riley’s comment. “You’re truly sick, all of this campaigning because you lost a race,” she roasted the former swimmer, adding, “Straight up sore loser. You should be uplifting the trans community and perhaps finding a way to make sports inclusive OR creating a new avenue where trans [people] feel safe in sports.” Say. It Louder. The seven-time gold medalist suggested, “Maybe a transgender category IN ALL sports!!”

“But instead… You bully them,” she continued. “No one in sports is safe with you around!!!!!” In a follow-up post, she went even harder, writing, “Bully someone your own size, which would ironically be a male.” (This was unlucky timing — Riley announced her pregnancy a few days later.)

Riley later responded by calling Simone’s tweets “so disappointing” and accusing the gymnast of “body-shaming.” She wrote, “Being a male-apologist at the expense of young girls’ dreams? Didn’t have that on my bingo card.”

On June 10, Simone took the high road and apologized for getting personal in her tweets. “I’ve always believed competitive equity & inclusivity are both essential in sport,” she wrote. “The current system doesn’t adequately balance these important principles, which often leads to frustration and heated exchanges, and it didn’t help for me to get personal with Riley, which I apologize for.” She added, “These are sensitive, complicated issues that I truly don’t have the answers or solutions to, but I believe it starts with empathy and respect.”

Simone emphasized that “individual athletes — especially kids — should never be the focus of criticism of a flawed system they have no control over.” She continued, “I believe sports organizations have a responsibility to come up with rules supporting inclusion while maintaining fair competition. We all want a future for sport that is fair, inclusive, and respectful.”

Riley Gaines’ TMZ Interview Comments About Simone Biles

Image Credit: Getty

On June 21, TMZ asked Riley if she’d ever work with Simone after their social media feud, and the conservative commentator was quick to respond, “Absolutely.” She elaborated, “Look, Simone is someone I’ve looked up to, I’ve respected for so long. She has done so much for women’s sports, of course, for the sport of gymnastics, but even broader than that for women in general.”

Riley added that Simone’s social media comments and general “stance” on the transgender women in sports issue “felt so deeply visceral” to her ” not because of the personal attacks, but … because of how she used her platform, a platform where young girls all across the nation, young girls like my little sister, who’s a gymnast, look up to her.” Mhmmm, I’m sure that’s the part that really got under her skin.

“In the blink of an eye, she effectively pulled up the ladder behind her,” she continued. “And again, a way that was, I think, done in haste. I think there was a lot of ignorance to the issue when she issued her initial tweets on that Friday evening.” Still, Riley claims she thinks Simone “would be a fantastic ally in this fight.”

“Her platform is incredible,” Riley noted. “I think we could do a lot together if she was willing to do it.” Well… keep dreaming, babe.