A notable collegiate athlete has endorsed Georgia U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker.
The former NFL star turned political candidate is running for a seat in the U.S. Senate. He and his opponent, Raphael Warnock, are currently engaged in a runnoff. Neither candidate got 50 percent in the election, so they’ll go at it again in December.
Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines, who competed against Penn’s Lia Thomas, is featured in the ad.
“My senior year, I was forced to compete against a biological male,” Riley Gaines says in the ad.
The sports world has taken to social media to weigh in on the endorsement.
“Climate change is destroying Georgia, and yet this is now The Discourse in the state’s U.S. Senate race,” one fan wrote.
“Left out on this is that this swimmer tied with Lia Thomas for FIFTH place. But this whole thing is tone deaf to most Americans who wonder what Republicans can offer with increasing inflation and that crime wave that no one is talking about anymore,” one fan added.
“Less than 48 hours after an attack on the LGBTQ community, Herschel Walker put out an ad spreading anti-trans rhetoric,” another fan wrote.
“Riley Gaines came in 5th place in that competition. I don’t think transgender athletes are her problem,” one fan added.
Both Thomas and Gaines finished tied for 5th in the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships back in March.