cyclist austin killips is building her own way forward

also, bmx rider chelsea wolfe on calling her international federation "nazis" to their faces

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I recently published a piece at SELF about some of the elite trans women athletes who have been banned from competing in their sports due to exclusionary policies from their international governing body. As always, some great content got left on the cutting room floor. In this case, cyclist Austin Killips’s story got cut from the final draft completely and I wanted to make sure to share it.

You can read my original article here. And you can follow Austin Killips on Instagram, or subscribe to her Patreon.

Read to the end for “The Best of Chelsea Wolfe: Quotes From the Cutting Room Floor,” on calling an international federation “nazis” to their faces. Later this week, an “In the Field” interview with Rachel Miller, the editor-in-chief of SELF.

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cyclist austin killips is building her own way forward

Austin Killips is a 29-year-old who catapulted to the top of her sport in May 2023 when she became the first openly transgender woman to win an official UCI cycling event after winning in the fifth stage of the Tour of the Gila, one of the most prestigious stage races in the U.S.

austin_trace

A post shared by @austin_trace

But on Friday, July 14, 2023, Killips woke up to an email containing a letter from UCI’s Director General Amina Lanaya telling her that she could no longer compete at UCI-sanctioned events thanks to a newly implemented ban on trans women participating in the women’s category. The ban would be going into effect on July 17th, just three days later.

The letter ended, ironically, with the line, “I thank you again for your commitment to our sport and your willingness to help us ensure fair competition for everyone.”