Every two-competitor relay team that medaled in the elite women’s division at the Marymoor Grand Prix in Washington State last week included a male athlete.
The competitors identified as “Jenna Lingwood,” “Jordan Lothrop,” and “Eva Lin” were the three males of the six competitors who made the podium in the women’s division at the annual Marymoor Grand Prix bike race held at the Jerry Baker Memorial Velodrome in Redmond, Washington over July 19 and 20. All three had previously competed with other men.
Canadian cyclist Lothrop placed first with his teammate and had competed in a men’s division as recently as 2023, Reduxx reported. Lingwood, who entered men’s races as “Jimmy” as recently as 2018, placed second; Lingwood won a women’s masters title in at the 2022 USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championships. Lin placed third; Lin previously raced as “Henry Lin” for the San Jose State University’s men’s team and switched to the women’s team in 2022, the Daily Mail reported.
Female cyclist Hannah Arensman, a 35-time winner on the national cyclocross circuit, contributed to an amicus brief filed to the Supreme Court once she left the sport after finishing between two male cyclists, Austin Killips and Lingwood.
“I have decided to end my cycling career. At my last race at the recent UCI Cyclocross National Championships in the elite women’s category in December 2022, I came in 4th place, flanked on either side by male riders awarded 3rd and 5th places,” Arensman wrote in the 2023 amicus brief, referencing Killips and Lingwood. “My sister and family sobbed as they watched a man finish in front of me, having witnessed several physical interactions with him throughout the race.”
According to the Jerry Baker Memorial Velodrome’s 2024 “Race Book” with policies and guidelines, the fields labeled “women’s” are “open to racers that identify as women, and those for whom competition in the women’s field is most athletically or socially appropriate.” Additionally, athletes in categories 1 and 2 may “participate in the gendered field which is most athletically appropriate,” and athletes in categories 3, 4, and Novice may “self-select the field that best fits with their gender identity, or that they feel is most athletically and socially appropriate for competitive purposes.”
“The [Jerry Baker Memorial Velodrome] follows USA Cycling’s Transgender Athlete Participation policies, affirms the gender identity of all people and supports the inclusion of all athletes,” reads the venue’s “Race Book.”
The venue’s “safety and inclusion statement” further states that “If you feel unsafe, unwelcome or witness any bullying or derogatory comments toward another member of our community especially related to race, creed, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, physical or mental disability, please reach out to us directly.”