"Baseless hit piece about me" - Riley Gaines takes a jab at accusations for making money out of advocacy

Riley Gaines recently took a jab at accusations that she is making money out of advocacy. Podcaster and Investigative journalist Pablo Torre accused Gaines of carrying her activism not only by being motivated by her beliefs, but also by the monetary incentives.

According to SwimSwam, in Torre's investigation, the data shows Gaines was paid a $25,000 appearance fee in 2025 by Harris County Republicans, a Republican political group in Houston, Texas. It also mentioned that in a period of five months, Gaines made $126,532 from her center of leadership, which was funded by the DeVos Family. As Torre shed light on his findings, the former swimmer rejected them by calling them baseless.

Gaines also mocked the '6-month investigation,' carried out only to find that she has a paid job. She further mentioned that she is too busy with her baby to focus on the criticism.

"I love when there’s a baseless hit piece about me, but I’m so consumed in our perfect baby that I didn’t even notice (and even if I had, I couldn’t care less). 6 month "investigation" for that? To find out I have a job that pays me? Ground-breaking discovery, truly. When you know you’re on the right side of history, the smears don’t matter. Try harder, @PabloTorre."

Riley Gaines

@Riley_Gaines_

I love when there’s a baseless hit piece about me, but I’m so consumed in our perfect baby that I didn’t even notice (and even if I had, I couldn’t care less) ​6 month "investigation" for that? To find out I have a job that pays me? Ground-breaking discovery, truly. ​When you know you’re on the right side of history, the smears don’t matter. Try harder, @PabloTorre 🤗

Riley Gaines and her husband Louis Barker welcomed their daughter in October 2025.

Riley Gaines opens up on why banning transgender athletes from women's sports is necessary

Riley Gaines during the 10X Ladies Conference in Aventura, Florida. (Photo by Getty Images)

Riley Gaines opened up on why she thinks banning transgender athletes from women's sports is compulsory, stating that it will demotivate the upcoming young female athletes. In an interview with Fox News, Gaines added that if transgender and biological women are made to compete against each other, it will hinder the latter's physical and mental growth.

“Title IX was written to protect women based on biological sex - not self-identified gender. To lose that foundational truth is to lose the heart of the law itself. Growth in sports is about more than medals - it’s about pushing ourselves mentally and physically, developing character, working hard, failing with grace, and winning with integrity."

"Sports are the training ground for life. If we allow Title IX to be redefined, we risk losing not just championships - but the next generation of women leaders."

Riley Gaines began her advocacy journey in 2022 after an incident at the NCAA Championships, when she tied with transgender swimmer Lia Thomas, but wasn't handed the trophy.