‘So unfair, so ridiculous’: Former US president Trump lashes out over transgender athletes in warning over women’s rights (VIDEO)

Donald Trump has taken aim at transgender athletes being allowed to compete in women's sports, NBA icon LeBron James, the USA Women's football team, Major League Baseball and Joe Biden as part of a long rant at a rally in Arizona.

Appearing in front of a backdrop that proclaimed him as 'President Donald Trump', the former head of state told a Republican rally in Phoenix that they would "make America great again" and said that part of his mission was to restore "honest, free and fair" elections, as well as "election integrity".

Trump criticized his Democrat successor, Joe Biden, over the country's borders, the growing introduction of "critical race theory" and free speech being "crushed" before he abruptly turned to "men being allowed to compete in women's sports".

"How do you like that?" asked the ranting 75-year-old as boos rang out. "Think of that. How fair is it?"

He then appeared to reference Laurel Hubbard, the transitioned athlete who has been allowed to compete at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

"Did you see the weightlifter?" asked Trump. "I hate to tell you this, women, but he's shattered your longstanding record."

It is unclear exactly which record Trump could have meant. "This guy gets up, 'boom, boom'," he added, having apparently watched the action intently.

"Like a nine-year record, sonny – a nine-year record. Boom. Did he do it with one hand? It's so unfair, so ridiculous. I'll be honest, though, look – we all like to win.

"If I was a coach, I wouldn't be talking to too many women as we know women. I'd be getting some of these people... they're women."

Trump trailed off to leave an air of mystery over what exactly he had meant to say, then turned his attention to an NBA legend and social justice warrior.

"Somebody said that if LeBron James ever decided to get the operation, how would he be?" he asked, appearing to imagine the Los Angeles Lakers talisman transitioning gender before telling female sports that they could "have him".

"How would he be on the court? And by the way, LeBron James – you can have him. Did you see the basketball ratings, which were terrible? They went up after his team was defeated.

"People want to see athletes, they want to see competition. But the last thing they want to see is men competing in women's sports. Very soon, you're not going to have women competing anymore. I hate to say it.

"You're going to have a coach have a full team, and that team is going to win the national championship so easily, you're not going to have women competing.

"They're taking away your rights. That's really a women's rights movement. You can't let that happen. And now they just allowed it to happen in the Olympics. The Olympics has gone bad, too."

Trump appeared to link that point to issues of hacking, "rockets being fired" and the US being "laughed at all over the world", which he insisted had never happened under his leadership.

"The radical left is determined to ruin everything in America," he said, setting himself up in somewhat incoherent style to take umbrage with Team USA's surprise defeat in the women's football at the Olympics.

"That's what they're doing. Woke politics takes the life and joy out of everything. Wokeism makes you lose, ruins your mind and ruins you as a person.

"You become warped, you become demented. The US women's soccer team is a very good example of what's going on.

"Earlier this week, they unexpectedly lost to Sweden three-to-nothing – and Americans were happy about it."

Trump has clashed with the women's team's captain, Megan Rapinoe, several times, although he swiftly moved on to Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred and the high-profile decision to move the All-Star game away from Georgia over changes to voting rules.

"Now the left is in the process of destroying our national pastime, baseball," claimed Trump.

"First, we saw the embarrassing spectacle of the Commissioner of baseball bowing to the radical left on voter fraud. You saw what they did: you saw they moved the All-Star game.

"Now one of the most beloved and storied franchises in baseball – all of baseball, I watched it as a kid at Yankee Stadium – the Cleveland Indians will be changing name [because of concerns over racism] that was filled with history and memories.

"The new name will be the Cleveland Guardians, which is terrible. The Cleveland Indians... you know, if I was an Indian, I'd sue. What could be better [than the name Indians], especially if you have a good team?

"It's one of the greatest names, one of the most incredible logos. People loved it. They are going absolutely crazy over the name change in Ohio.

"What's that about? The insanity of the left knows no bounds, and both Indians and baseball fans should be greatly insulted. They want to take away our history, our heritage, our culture and everything that holds us together."