American runner and Olympian Nikki Hiltz has expressed frustration over the Texas legislature's ban on transgender people from using public restrooms. On Wednesday, September 4, the Texas Senate passed a bill banning transgender individuals from using bathrooms, locker rooms, or incarceration facilities that align with their gender identity.According to reports, the bill imposes a $25,000 fine on any government agency or public institution, like a school or university, for a first violation, and $125,000 for a second offense. Hiltz, who is traveling to Tokyo for the World Athletics Championships, voiced their frustration on Instagram, writing:“Definitely not feeling super patriotic going into this world champs especially with so much BS like this passing in the states rn.”Screenshot of story (IG/@nikkihiltz)The American middle-distance runner is set to represent the U.S. in the women’s 1500m at the championships at Worlds.Nikki Hiltz most recently competed at the Brussels Diamond League on August 29, where they won the women’s 1500m in 3:55.94, marking the first Diamond League 1500m victory by an American woman since 2018. Linden Hall and Nelly Chepchirchir finished second and third, respectively. Hiltz then skipped the Zurich Diamond League finals.Nikki Hiltz opens up about setbacks, details injury struggles and car accident in 2025 seasonMemorial Van Damme 2025 - Wanda Diamond League - Source: GettyNikki Hiltz had a challenging 2025 season. In March, they changed coaches from Mike Smith to Julie Benson, then later in May suffered a hamstring injury, and was also involved in a car accident in June. Amid all these struggles, Hiltz still claimed their third consecutive U.S. outdoor title in the 1500m and secured a spot on the World Championships team.In a post-race interview after U.S. nationals, they reflected on the 2025 season and said (via Speakurpiece):“It’s been a hard year. Like, I think from the outside, you can see it looks very linear, like, ‘Oh, Nikki’s just repeating and running well,’ but it’s been so hard… So I switched coaches. In March, I started working with Julie, which isn’t that long ago. It’s been a bit of an adjustment… But even change, like, even if it’s good change, change is hard.”“You know, and then I had a little hamstring thing come up… And then Emma and I, my partner and I, got in a really scary car accident. Yeah, it was in the middle of June, and it just rocked us. Like, it was just scary,” Nikki Hiltz added. View this post on Instagram Instagram PostNikki Hiltz started their season strong by winning both the 1500m and 3000m at the USATF Indoor Championships in February. They also hold the American mile record at 4:16.35.