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A woman who was banned from a Planet Fitness gym after photographing a transgender customer shaving in the women’s locker room claims the gym has since assigned a staffer to accompany the person in the ladies-only area — and is telling other women to back off, The Post has learned.

Patricia Silva — whose membership was revoked hours after she posted a photo of the unidentified gym-goer to Facebook on March 11 — told The Post on Thursday that Planet Fitness “has assigned an employee to accompany him when he uses the womens locker room”.

“Another friend of mine went to that gym the other day and he was in there — shaving his face again,” Silva told The Post. “He is dressed as a man. His hair is cut short. It appeared that he was dressed, shaving his face and getting ready to leave for the day.

“He has an employee who is assisting him in the bathroom,” Silva continued. “My friend said to his accompanied Planet Fitness rep that he needs to leave.”

In response, “This woman told my friend that if you are uncomfortable you can go into a stall,” according to Silva.

Silva’s friend, who wished to remain anonymous, declined to be interviewed by The Post.

In an interview with The Post, Silva said the Planet Fitness member she photographed claimed to be “transitioning”.

He wasnt physically doing anything threatening, Silva told The Post. But we had a man full of shaving cream on his face in the middle of the locker room.

Silva unleashed a firestorm last week after confronting the unidentified gym-goer and posting a trio of videos that recounted the incident and her ban from the gym. The video went viral — and has been blamed for Planet Fitness’ value plunging by more than $400 million amid calls to boycott the popular chain.

I said Hey and asked him to leave,” Silva said of their encounter. “He said Im LGB queer, transitioning, and I said, ‘That doesnt give you the right to be in the womens locker room.’ 

Silva, repeating details from the account she gave in her videos, also said there was a young girl with a towel wrapped around her who looked uneasy and frightened of the clean-shaven interloper.

But it was Silva who found herself looking for a new gym after Planet Fitness banned her for breaking its policy against photographing other members in the locker rooms.

As the home of the Judgement Free Zone, Planet Fitness is committed to creating an inclusive environment, a spokesperson for the corporate parent said in a statement.

Our gender identity non-discrimination policy states that members and guests may use the gym facilities that best align with their sincere, self-reported gender identity. The member who posted on social media violated our mobile device policy that prohibits taking photos of individuals in the locker room, which resulted in their membership being terminated.

The backlash against the company and the Fairbanks gym soon followed.

The companys stock price, which traded at a monthly high of $66.92 on March 7, plummeted to a low of $56.46 on Tuesday when word got out about the incident. It climbed back up to close at $58.86 on Thursday.

Many have either canceled their memberships or decided to stay away from the Fairbanks location.

My husband and I were getting ready to join, wrote one local on the gyms Facebook account. Guess well be joining the community center.

Another wrote, canceled our membership this morning. The post got 34 heart emojis.

Silva says she wants to take the issue to the state and city legislature, advocating for a “bathroom bill” that would require people to use the lavatory that corresponds with the gender they were assigned at birth.

There are 11 states, including Florida, Alabama, and Utah, that regulate bathroom access for transgender people.

She also approached the Fairbanks Police Department about the incident but was told, she said, to back off.

In 2021, Silva ran for a seat on the Fairbanks state Assembly and she was a campaign coordinator for Republican Dan Sullivan, who is the state’s junior senator.

Silva, however, isn’t likely to get support from Fairbanks Mayor David Pruhs.

I keep government out of private business, he told The Post. If others want to boycott [Planet Fitness] good on them, but the city will not be stepping into this issue.

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Sports

Braves activate RHP Anderson, sign OF Rosario

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Braves activate RHP Anderson, sign OF Rosario

It was old faces in familiar places for the Atlanta Braves on Monday after they activated right-hander Ian Anderson to the active roster and signed outfielder Eddie Rosario to a major league contract.

In corresponding moves, outfielder Jarred Kelenic was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett, while right-hander Davis Daniel was optioned to Triple-A after Sunday’s game.

Both Anderson and Rosario emerged as 2021 postseason heroes in Atlanta as the Braves went on to win the World Series.

Anderson, who was claimed off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday, went 4-0 with a 1.26 ERA in eight postseason starts for the Braves over the 2020 and 2021 postseasons.

In the 2021 World Series, Anderson famously pitched five no-hit innings in Game 3 to lead Atlanta to a 2-0 victory over the Houston Astros. The Braves defeated the Astros in six games.

Anderson, who turns 27 Friday, was traded by the Braves to the Angels on March 23 for left-hander Jose Suarez. He struggled badly with his new club, going 0-1 with an 11.57 ERA in seven relief appearances. He allowed 17 hits and seven walks in just 9⅓ innings.

Rosario, 33, signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers in February and played in two games with the club, going 1-for-4. He was designated for assignment and became a free agent when Shohei Ohtani returned from the paternity list just over a week ago.

Rosario was the 2021 National League Championship Series MVP, when he powered the Braves past the Dodgers with three home runs, nine RBIs and a 1.647 OPS in six games.

Over parts of 11 seasons, Rosario is a career .261 hitter with 169 home runs and 583 RBIs in 1,123 games with five different clubs, including five seasons with the Minnesota Twins (2015-20) and four with the Braves (2021-24).

Kelenic, 25, was batting .167 with two home runs in 23 games and is a career .211 hitter with 49 home runs and 156 RBIs in 406 games with the Seattle Mariners (2021-23) and Braves.

Daniel, 27, made his only appearance for the Braves on Sunday with a scoreless inning and has appeared in 10 games (six starts) over the past three seasons with a 4.95 ERA.

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Technology

Spotify paid over $100 million to podcasts in the first quarter, including Joe Rogan, Alex Cooper and Theo Von

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Spotify paid over 0 million to podcasts in the first quarter, including Joe Rogan, Alex Cooper and Theo Von

Pavlo Gonchar | Lightrocket | Getty Images

Spotify said Monday it paid more than $100 million to podcast publishers and podcasters worldwide in the first quarter of 2025.

The figure includes all creators on the platform across all formats and agreements, including the platform’s biggest fish, Joe Rogan, Alex Cooper and Theo Von, the company said.

Rogan, host of “The Joe Rogan Experience,” Cooper of “Call Her Daddy” and “This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von” were among the top podcasts on Spotify globally in 2024.

Rogan and Cooper’s exclusivity deals with Spotify have ended, and while Rogan signed a new Spotify deal last year worth up to $250 million, including revenue sharing and the ability to post on YouTube, Cooper inked a SiriusXM deal in August.

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Even when shows are no longer exclusive to Spotify, they are still uploaded to the platform and qualify for the Spotify Partner Program, which launched in January in the U.S., U.K., Canada and Australia.

The program allows creators to earn revenue every time an ad monetized by Spotify plays in the episode, as well as revenue when Premium subscribers watch dynamic ads on videos.

Competing platform Patreon said it paid out over $472 million to podcasters from over 6.7 million paid memberships in 2024.

YouTube’s payouts are massive by comparison but include more than just podcasts. The company said it paid $70 billion to creators between 2021 and 2024 with payouts rising each year, according to YouTube CEO Neal Mohan.

Spotify reports first-quarter earnings on Tuesday.

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Environment

BYD now has the world’s largest car transport ship and it just set sail overseas

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BYD now has the world's largest car transport ship and it just set sail overseas

The BYD “Shenzhen” set sail on its first voyage overseas this week. With 9,200 parking spots, or about enough to fill 20 football fields, BYD’s new car transport ship is now the world’s largest.

BYD’s largest car carrier sets sail for Brazil

BYD’s Shenzhen is on its maiden voyage to Brazil after setting sail on April 27. The vessel is carrying over 7,000 new energy vehicles (NEVs), including electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). It’s the largest single batch of NEVs exported from China so far.

The new vessel is BYD’s fourth car transport ship and the world’s largest, capable of carrying 9,000 vehicles. According to the company, that’s enough to fill about 20 football fields.

BYD launched its first car carrier, the Explorer No 1, in January 2024. It has already completed several trips to Germany, Spain, and Brazil.

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Its second, the BYD Changzhou, set sail in December 2024, followed by the Hefei earlier this year. All three vessels can carry up to 7,000 vehicles, making the Shenzhen the largest so far.

BYD's-largest-car-transport-ship
BYD Shenzhen, the world’s largest car transport ship (Source: BYD)

The Shenzhen is named after the automaker’s hometown and demonstrates “BYD’s firm determination to promote sustainable development in Brazil.”

BYD is preparing to launch two more vessels, the Changsha and Xi’an. The Changsha is expected to launch soon, while the Xi’an was introduced on April 2.

The new car carriers will help accelerate BYD’s aggressive overseas expansion. In the first three months of 2025, the company sold over 206,000 NEVs overseas, more than double the number it sold last year.

BYD sells a wide range of vehicles in Brazil, including the low-cost Dolphin Mini, starting at around $20,000 (99,800 BRL). In October, it launched its first hybrid pickup truck, the Shark, starting at 379,800 BTL ($66,900).

Brazil is only one overseas market that BYD is targeting. BYD’s sales are expected to double in Europe in 2025, with significant growth in other key regions like Southeast Asia, Japan, Mexico, and South Korea, to name a few.

Source: BYD

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