A recent controversy surrounding the University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas, a transgender woman who was assigned male at birth. She previously competed as a male on the swimming team for three seasons until she recently came out as transgender during this past swim season.
Thomas has been a big part of the women’s UPenn’s swim team. She broke several women’s records, and also gone on to set the nation’s best times in the 200 meter (1:41.93s) and 500 meter (4:34.06s) earlier this season. This has raised several questions about the validity of Lia Thomas, and whether she rightfully belongs in women’s sports.
Several athletes, coaches and teams have written letters to the governing body of the NCAA protesting against the inclusion of Lia Thomas. “The fact is that swimming is a sport in which bodies compete against bodies. Identities do not compete against identities. Men are different from women; men swimmers are different from women, and they will always be faster than women,” Millen said according to maristcircle.com
While Thomas has been taking testosterone blockers for over a year, yet she holds an inherent advantage over the rest of the field, considering her stature and other features. Facing backlash for taking several titles this year, Thomas maintains that “the very simple answer is that I’m not a man. I’m a woman, so I belong on the women’s team. Trans people deserve that same respect every other athlete gets.”
* story by firstsportz.com
