Riley Gaines is having a baby—and she’s not missing the chance to take a swing on her way into motherhood.
The 25-year-old former NCAA swimmer revealed she’s expecting her first child with husband Louis Barker, a baby girl due later this year. The announcement came during a live event on June 14, where Gaines turned a personal milestone into a public moment—with a not-so-subtle jab aimed at Olympic legend Simone Biles.
Gaines, now a full-time conservative commentator and host of Gaines for Girls, took the mic to address her recent online feud with Biles, who called her “truly sick” for criticizing a transgender athlete competing in girls’ high school softball. The criticism came after Gaines labeled the championship win “to be expected when your star player is a boy.”
Biles didn’t hold back in response:
“You’re truly sick, all of this campaigning because you lost a race,” she wrote on X. “Straight up sore loser… maybe try creating a space where trans athletes feel safe.”
During her event, Gaines didn’t respond with policy—she used her pregnancy. Referring to Biles’ remark that she should “bully someone your own size, which would ironically be a man,” Gaines smiled and pulled back her jacket to reveal her baby bump.
“How many men do you know that have this?” she said, drawing loud cheers from the crowd.
Shortly after, Gaines shared the news on Instagram with a photo of herself, Barker, an ultrasound image, and a horse—because of course.
“Surprise! We’re 26 weeks pregnant!” she wrote. “God is SO good all the time.”
In a follow-up post on X, she tied the announcement back to her activism.
“There’s something so special and providential about having a little girl. She’s everything I’ve been fighting for & the little girl we’ve prayed over for years. Praise God.”
The feud isn’t new. Gaines, who’s built her post-swimming career around campaigning against transgender participation in women’s sports, has been a lightning rod for criticism. The latest clash with Biles started after Gaines responded to a celebratory post by the Minnesota State High School League. The league had praised its first-ever softball state championship, led in part by Marissa Rothenberger, a transgender athlete.
That was enough to spark a viral exchange, with Biles stepping in to accuse Gaines of targeting trans athletes rather than offering real solutions.
“One thing’s for sure,” Biles wrote, “no one in sports is safe with you around.”
Now, with a baby on the way, Gaines seems intent on using motherhood as her latest platform. Whether it softens her image or sharpens her message remains to be seen—but she’s clearly not backing off the fight anytime soon.
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Last modified: June 17, 2025
