The 2025 World’s Strongest Woman final descended into chaos after an alleged transgender athlete took gold, sparking outrage from athletes and coaches.
American Jammie Booker, who is accused of being a biological male, beat Great Britain’s Andrea Thompson to victory at the event in Arlington, Texas.
But Thompson walked off the podium, appearing to say ‘this is bulls***,’ while Booker celebrated. The Brit has since been crowned the ‘true World’s Strongest Woman’ by her coach and some of her peers.
Rebecca Roberts, a three-time winner of World’s Strongest Woman, has sensationally claimed that no one – not even the organizers – knew about Booker’s background.
Details on the American are murky but in a YouTube video – uploaded to what appears to be Booker’s YouTube channel in September 2017 – Booker says: ‘Everyone is dying to tell their own story and I am obviously no exception to that.
‘I’m 21 year-old trans woman with a history of abuse, struggling to stay true to herself while under the rule of her religious parents.’
On Monday night, Roberts posted a picture on Instagram which read ‘Protect Women’s Sports.’ She wrote alongside the picture: ‘I hold no hate toward transgender people. Everyone deserves dignity, respect, and the freedom to live their truth.
‘But I cannot stay silent about something that threatens the fairness and future of women’s strength sports. Transgender women, people born male, should not be competing in the women’s category.
‘This isn’t about identity. It isn’t about politics. It’s about the undeniable physical differences that exist in strength-based sports… differences that don’t disappear, and that matter more here than almost anywhere else. Women’s categories were created for a reason, and if we lose that, we lose the foundation of our sport.
‘What happened this weekend wasn’t transparent. None of us knew. Not even the organisers knew. And when fairness is taken by surprise, trust in the sport begins to crack.
‘My message is simple. Trans people belong in sport, but women’s divisions must remain biologically born female-only.
‘I love this sport. I have given my life to it. And I won’t ignore something that could quietly change it forever. Congratulations to @andreathompson_strongwoman… the true World’s Strongest Woman 2025’
Thompson was among those to like the post. Her coach Laurence Shahlaei, meanwhile, also took to social media to express his opposition to the official results.
‘A huge congratulations to my client but more importantly, my very good friend @andreathompson_strongwoman for winning the World’s Strongest Woman 2025,’ he wrote.
‘You worked your a** off for this and I’m so proud of you. You absolutely dominated the deadlift, log and circus dumbbell and while there are still a couple of weaknesses to work on, you were still the strongest woman on the day.
‘This win hasn’t come without controversy, but I want to make it very clear that while I support and applaud people for being who they want to be, sport is sport and the women’s classes exist for a reason.’
One of Booker’s sponsors also accused the athlete of ‘misrepresenting critical information to OSG [Official Strongman Games] officials and judges.’
Iron Ape, which sells sports strength equipment, revealed that she was ‘no longer affiliated’ with the brand ‘in any capacity after the controversy surrounding her “win.”‘
In a statement, Iron Ape owner Colton Cross wrote: ‘We have reason to believe that Jammie Booker misrepresented critical information to OSG officials and judges, resulting in an unfair advantage over the other competitors in the Women’s Open class.
‘Effective immediately, Jammie Booker has been removed from the Iron Ape athlete roster… this is not a matter of Jammie’s gender identity. Iron Ape does not, and never will, discriminate against individuals based on gender, race, sexual orientation, or any other personal characteristic.
‘We expect every Iron Ape athlete to uphold the highest standards of sportsmanship. When those standards are violated, decisive action must be taken.’
Meanwhile, Mitchell Hooper – the 2023 World’s Strongest Man – paid tribute to Thompson with his own message on Instagram. ‘Congratulations to @andreathompson_strongwoman on a champions [sic] performance this weekend at Worlds Strongest Woman.’
His post drew an outpouring of support for the British athlete, notably from three-time winner of World’s Strongest Woman, Donna Moore. ‘True winner of Worlds Strongest WOMAN this weekend,’ she commented.
Hooper also shared a YouTube video slamming the result after he went to watch the competition in Texas in person.
‘The first time I saw Jammie, I said: “This woman looks different,”‘ Hooper recalled. ‘She was probably three to four inches taller, and probably 80lbs heavier than her closest competitor.’
He added: ‘Whatever you want to be you want to be, but there is a time when you have to take a stand for women’s sports.’
The Daily Mail has contacted Booker and Official Strongman Games for comment.
But, on Monday, Booker posted an emotional message to social media in the wake of the competition. She thanked Official Strongman Games ‘for having me’ and paid tribute to her fellow competitors.
‘You are all insanely bada** women and it was an honor just to even share the stage with you and to be there to cheer you on and be cheered on by you,’ Booker said, fighting back tears.
‘I genuinely did not expect this outcome and I’m not saying that in a way to gloat or be prideful. When I signed up for this competition I did not expect to win – it was a pipe dream.’
She continued: ‘Obviously everyone enters a competition wanting to win but I did not think this would be the one for me and the fact that it is, I’m genuinely lost for words.
‘I don’t know what comes next, I don’t know where I’ll compete next… I just want to say thank you to all of you from the bottom of my heart. It’s really surreal.’
