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Trans Cyclist Slams 'Bigots' After Winning Female World Championship

McKinnon

Rachel McKinnon's message to transphobes: My victory is legitimate.

Nbroverman
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Rachel McKinnon made history last weekend in Los Angeles when she became the first trans woman to win the 2018 UCI Masters Track Cycling World Championships.

But instead of being toasted for her victory, the South Carolina gender studies professor -- who hails from Canada and competed as a Canadian -- has been inundated with hate and transphobia on Twitter.

In addition to her victory, McKinnon set a new world record Sunday during the women's 34-39 sprint qualifying flying 200m, with a time of 0:00:11.92, according to Cycling News (which noted that McKinnon's record was later broken by another cyclist that weekend).

But after tweeting about her record and victory on Saturday, McKinnon was soon met with an avalanche of hate. The Advocate is not sharing the cruel tweets, many of which accused McKinnon of "being a man" and cheating. The UCI cycling championship adheres to the same rules on trans athletes as the International Olympic Committee, which requires trans women maintain low levels of testosterone for at least a year prior to competing.

For the past five days, McKinnon has been forced to defend herself.

Nbroverman
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Neal Broverman

Neal Broverman is the Editorial Director, Print of Pride Media, publishers of The Advocate, Out, Out Traveler, and Plus, spending more than 20 years in journalism. He indulges his interest in transportation and urban planning with regular contributions to Los Angeles magazine, and his work has also appeared in the Los Angeles Times and USA Today. He lives in the City of Angels with his husband, children, and their chiweenie.
Neal Broverman is the Editorial Director, Print of Pride Media, publishers of The Advocate, Out, Out Traveler, and Plus, spending more than 20 years in journalism. He indulges his interest in transportation and urban planning with regular contributions to Los Angeles magazine, and his work has also appeared in the Los Angeles Times and USA Today. He lives in the City of Angels with his husband, children, and their chiweenie.