Female cyclist retires because of male competitors: Women 'no longer have a fair chance'

Hannah Arensman — a professional female cyclist from Brevard, North Carolina, who just turned 25 years old — has retired from the competitive circuit because male participants now dominate the sport, reports confirmed on Wednesday.

At her last race, the 2022 USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championships held back in December, Arensman finished in fourth place and was kept off of the winner's podium by Austin Killips. As might be guessed by his name, Austin Killips is a man who finished in third place, ahead of Arensman and dozens of other female cyclists, and who opted not to participate in the "non-binary" competition the day before.

"It has become increasingly discouraging to train as hard as I do only to have to lose to a man with the unfair advantage of an androgenized body that intrinsically gives him an obvious advantage over me, no matter how hard I train," Arensman said in a statement.

With his third-place finish, Killips didn't just keep Arensman from a bronze medal in the national championship. He may also have kept Arensman from a spot on the U.S. team at the 2023 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships, held last month in the Netherlands.

In her statement, Arensman expressed sadness and frustration that she has spent most of her life in sports, only to be outdone by men. She also expressed concern about young female riders who now have little hope of competing at a high level because of male infiltrators.

"I feel for young girls learning to compete and who are growing up in a day when they no longer have a fair chance at being the new record holders and champions in cycling because men want to compete in our division," she said.

In addition to the men in women's sports, Arensman's statement took aim at the leaders of professional and national athletics organizations who have not fought to preserve competitive categories for women only.

"I have felt deeply angered, disappointed, overlooked, and humiliated that the rule makers of women’s sports do not feel it is necessary to protect women’s sports to ensure fair competition for women anymore," Arensman said.

Arensman's retirement statement appeared in a U.S. Supreme Court brief, filed on March 13, regarding the Save Women's Sports law in West Virginia. "By affirming West Virginia’s right to stand with women and girls, this Court can ensure that females’ basic right to be treated equally is still the legal norm in the United States," stated the amici curiae brief, officially supported by 67 female athletes, coaches, sports officials, and parents of female athletes.

The Independent Council on Women's Sports — an organization with the goal of "elevating and empowering female athletes" and "protecting [the] safety, fairness and opportunity for girls and women" — likewise shared Arensman's retirement statement on social media.

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