
Image by Bethany Hamilton (@bethanyhamilton) via Instagram
CV NEWS FEED // Christian surfer Bethany Hamilton recently reasserted that biological men have no place in women’s sports after popular surfing brand Rip Curl featured a “trans” surfer in an ad campaign.
Hamilton, a surfer known for losing an arm to a shark attack while surfing at just 13 years old, has long been a supporter of protecting women’s sports. On January 29, she spoke out on X re-affirming her stance on “trans” athletes.
“Male-bodied athletes should not be competing in female sports. Period,” she posted on January 29.
Conservative sports news outlet OutKick reported that Hamilton’s post on X comes after Rip Curl, an Australia-based surfwear company, decided to use “trans” surfer Sasha Lowerson to promote women’s surfing gear.
Hamilton had previously represented Rip Curl as a brand ambassador for over 20 years. According to OutKick, Rip Curl reportedly “cut ties” with Hamilton several months ago due to her support of keeping biological men out of women’s sports.
Rip Curl launched the ad campaign featuring Lowerson on Instagram on January 25, but later disabled comments and finally deleted the post due to backlash.
Several people are calling for #RIPcurl boycotts on social media, while others are destroying their Rip Curl merchandise to protest the brand’s decision.
Riley Gaines, another well-known athlete who supports keeping biological men out of women’s sports, also commented on Rip Curl’s ad campaign. After the company posted photos of biological women to promote women’s swimwear only a few days after launching the Lowerson campaign, Gaines posted that “Ripcurl suddenly knows what a woman is.”
“They’ve also since deleted all posts promoting a male surfer posing as a woman after dropping Bethany Hamilton,” she continued. “They want you to forget about their contempt for women. Don’t.”
