Trans cyclist Emily Bridges vows to fight British Cycling ‘in the courts and the streets’ over its transgender ban amid backlash at Vogue magazine for naming her as the ONLY sportswoman on this year’s list of 25 ‘powerhouse’ women
- Bridges campaigned against a British Cycling ban on trans athletes competing
The transgender cyclist who sparked controversy after being featured in Vogue’s top 25 ‘powerhouse’ women has vowed to ‘fight in the court and the streets’ to race against female athletes.
Emily Bridges was banned from competing in the women’s category of the bike sport by British Cycling.
But the athlete yesterday sparked a backlash after being named in the fashion magazine’s influential list, ahead of sportswomen like the Lionesses.
In an interview with the publication, Bridges said: ‘While I have learned not to attach my entire self-worth to cycling, I’ll still be fighting British Cycling’s decision in the courts and the streets.
‘I’ll continue to march with my trans siblings and use the voice I have to challenge injustice in the world.
Emily Bridges has vowed to fight British Cycling on its ban on transgender competitors in women’s races
Vogue magazine has sparked a backlash after the only sportswoman named on its of list of the top 25 ‘powerhouse’ women was transgender cyclist Emily Bridges
‘It’s very scary at the moment but I genuinely believe that we will win.
Vogue magazine sparks backlash by naming trans cyclist Emily Bridges as the ONLY sportswoman on this year’s list of 25 ‘powerhouse’ women
‘We, as trans people, challenge something that most people see as so unchangeable, so innate.
‘Once those barriers start to break down, you see how socially constructed much of our world view is, and how other things — like power, class, money and capital — can also be challenged. We pose a threat to the status quo, and it’s one of the reasons why, I believe, transphobia is rife.’
Others on the list included 25-year-old pop star Raye, BBC broadcaster Naga Munchetty and fashion designer Sarah Burton.
Some gender critical campaigners have reportedly questioned why certain sportswomen were not featured on the list.
Outspoken campaigner and former Olympian runner Maya Yamauchi wrote on social media: ‘Right now there are numerous fabulous female athletes in Budapest competing at the World Athletics Champs.
The cyclist has campaigned against a British Cycling ban on trans athletes competing in the women’s category
Other women on the list included 25-year-old pop star Raye, BBC broadcaster Naga Munchetty and fashion designer Sarah Burton
‘In other sports too, thousands of fabulous female athletes British Vogue could have chosen.’
Meanwhile, Fiona McAnena, director of Fair Play for Women, said the nomination was a ‘real kick in the teeth for women’.
She told the Telegraph: ‘Emily Bridges is not yet a successful international cyclist so it’s hard to see why Bridges is there.
‘Katarina Johnson-Thompson became the World Champion in the heptathlon– she is a world champion in a really tough event. She should be in there, not Bridges.’
Throughout the Vogue article, the 22-year-old cyclist highlighted why she was continuing her fight for inclusion within the world of sport, adding that it had caused her to receive ‘death threats’.
She told the magazine: ‘It’s very scary at the moment, but I genuinely believe that we will win.’
The Welsh athlete added that the next step is to fight the decision ‘in the courts’.
British Cycling’s decision to ban transgender women from racing in the female category was made in May of this year, leading to gender critical activists praising the organisation.
At the time Bridges branded the decision as a ‘genocide against us’ adding that the move could she her giving up competitive cycling and emigrate.
The cyclist, who set a national junior men’s record over 25 miles in 2018 before transitioning said at the time: ‘I’m having to consider an exit plan from this terrible island.’
MailOnline has contacted Vogue.
The Vogue 25: Who is on the list?
Raye, musician
Patricia Scotland, Commonwealth secretary-general
Kylie Minogue, musician
Raine Allen-Miller, director
Naga Munchetty, broadcaster
Louise Casey, member of the House of Lords
Sandra Igwe, maternal health advocate
Carol Vorderman, broadcaster
Victoria Jenkins, fashion designer
Jodie Comer, actor
Sarah Burton, fashion designer
Eva Langret, director of Frieze London
Kruti Patel Goyal, CEO
Alice Oseman, writer
Cora Corre, activist & model
HM Queen Camilla, member of the Royal Family
Alva Claire, model
Heather Hallett, chair of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry
Tori Tsui, author & activist
Marcia Kilgore, founder of Beauty Pie
Penny Mordaunt, member of Parliament
Emily Bridges, cyclist
Indhu Rubasingham, theatre director
Lila Moss, model
Emefa Cole, jewellery designer
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