Australian surfing company Rip Curl is attracting attention after appointing a male-born transgender model as one of its new female brand ambassadors.
The move comes just months after the wetsuit brand fired Bethany Hamilton, the surfer who famously lost an arm in a shark attack, for criticizing male athletes competing as women.
On January 24, Rip Curl featured surfer Sasha Jane Rowerson, 42, real name Ryan Egan, describing her as “Western Australia’s waterwoman.”
The company describes Rowerson as “a Western Australian aquatic woman who loves the freedom that surfing offers, the detachment from the mainstream, and the feeling of dancing on ever-changing waves…always ready to try something new.” “It is a state of mind where one is curious and curious about what one wants to explore.” She draws on knowledge, learns rules, and breaks them. ” redux report
The post appears to have been deleted from Rip Curl’s Instagram page.
Lowerson is notable for: won They won the women’s title in 2022, just three years after winning the men’s title, and then “transitioned” to 2021. He remains the only person to win both men’s and women’s longboard titles.
The choice to include male-born surfers drew immediate criticism.
according to @Rip Curl This man is a “water woman”…in reality, he is a mentally ill man who is completely mocking real women. pic.twitter.com/XeCSeLKyPF
— Taylor Silverman (@tmsilverman) January 26, 2024
Imagine replacing the incredible pro surfer who survived having his arm bitten off by a shark with a man pretending to be a woman. ♀️What are my followers and I going to do?we all do #boycottlipcurl
will you do? pic.twitter.com/l0hVB0mts1
— Erin Elizabeth Health Nut News 🙌 (@unhealthytruth) January 27, 2024
Women’s sports advocate Riley Gaines also criticized Rip Curl’s move to invite Rowerson.
“Are you saying @ripcurl dropped Bethany Hamilton for hostile to a man who surfs in a women’s league, then brought in a male surfer who surfs in a women’s league as a female ambassador?” Gaines wrote.
do you want to tell me @Rip Curl Did they drop Bethany Hamilton with a male surfer who surfs in a women’s league as the antagonist, and bring in a male surfer who surfs in a women’s league as a female ambassador?
Extremely pic.twitter.com/GMvM5qfP0q
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) January 25, 2024
Rip Curl has announced that Bethany Surf League has announced that surfers have shared several social media posts questioning the 2022 guidelines that allow men to compete as women in competitions run by the World Surf League. Hamilton was fired.
“Are hormone levels an honest and accurate depiction of whether a person is actually male or female? Is it this simple?” Hamilton asked in one video. The next moment she questioned this policy again, and she said: “Am I just a hormonal number?” Is it really that simple? ”
Hamilton too blackmailed Boycotting World Surf League events over rule changes that would allow transgender athletes to compete as women.
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