Champion cyclist alleges Jewish identity played role in dismissal from International Women's Day event

Leah Goldstein, a Jewish cyclist and former IDF soldier, tells 'Fox & Friends First' she was removed as the keynote speaker for an International Women's Day event.

A Jewish cyclist disinvited as the keynote speaker for an International Women’s Day event due to her previous Israeli military service alleges there was more to her dismissal than meets the eye.

"The question is… what about other Jewish women that want to come to this conference? Are they also excluded?" she asked Thursday on "Fox & Friends First."

"Another question is, if I was a Palestinian woman, would I also be removed? And, as a Jewish woman, let me just add that I wouldn't feel offended listening to a Palestinian woman talk about her life experiences and stuff that she had gone through, so why am I excluded from this? But it is simply because I'm Jewish. The IDF is just an excuse."

CHAMPION CYCLIST SAYS SHE WOULD SERVE IN IDF RIGHT NOW AMID REMOVAL FROM INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY EVENT

Champion cyclist Leah Goldstein was removed as the keynote speaker at an International Women's Day event. (Fox & Friends First/iStock)

Goldstein, a Race Across America champion and former world kickboxing champion, was born in Canada but raised in Israel.

She served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) over 30 years ago, but event organizers claimed that service prompted a "a small but growing and extremely vocal group" to challenge her role in the event, according to The Times of Israel.

Critics pressed for her opinion on the current conflict underway in the Middle East, but she thought providing such comments to the group was "ridiculous."

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Goldstein served in the Israel Defense