Female cyclist defends decision to not take podium with transgender winner
Julie Cutts Peterson refused to attend medal ceremony after finishing second to Katheryn ‘KJ’ Phillips
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A female cyclist took a stand by not taking a stand — on the podium.
Julie Cutts Peterson refused to take to the stage after finishing second in a women’s cycling race last week that was won by a transgender athlete.
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The veteran cyclist defended her decision this week during an appearance on Fox News’ America Reports.
“At the finish line, I was upset. I said, ‘I did not want to race against a man,’” Peterson said, referring to a post-race statement that made the crowd gasp. “In my mind, I was like, ‘I can say that, I have freedom of speech.’
“I was raised believing in the Bible where men are created by God and God created women from men, I was born and raised in America, where I learned my pronouns and I took science classes that taught me about XX and XY and I believe that most Americans and people worldwide would support men not being in women’s categories.”
Peterson came in second place to Katheryn “KJ” Phillips — a transgender athlete who was born a biological male — at the Lyons Masters National Championships in Wisconsin on July 1.
Peterson is one of several veteran female cyclists who have spoken out against USA Cycling, claiming the organization failed to disclose the participation of a transgender athlete.
Peterson said she only knew that a transgender athlete was in the race after Phillips came “out of nowhere” during the final sprint.
“I knew at that sprint that that was a man’s sprint,” Peterson said, while noting her experience riding among both men and women.
It was a shock to Peterson and other competitors, who claim that Phillips’ name was not included on the registration list, “which means that we were not given the information that he would be racing in our category before the race started.”
When asked for a comment about the incident by Fox News, USA Cycling reportedly responded by providing its transgender eligibility policy.
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