Transgender swimmer Lia Thomas will not take advantage of the opportunity for a female swimmer at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Thomas, the biological male who won the 2022 women’s national championship while swimming for Penn, officially lost a legal battle against World Aquatics, in which Thomas argued that its ban on competing against women was “invalid and unlawful.”
The 25-year-old was banned from swimming in the women’s category in the summer of 2022 when the sport’s governing body prohibited anyone who had gone through “any stage of male puberty” from competing against biological women.
World Aquatics welcomed the court’s decision to uphold the rule banning Thomas from the women’s pool, calling it “an important step forward in our efforts to protect women’s sports.”
“World Aquatics is committed to fostering an environment that promotes equity, respect, and equal opportunities for athletes of all genders, and we reiterate this promise,” the organization said, according to The Guardian .
It’s worth noting that World Aquatics has not banned transgender athletes from competing. The organization has introduced an “open” category for transgender swimmers. The new category debuted at last year’s World Championships in Berlin, but received no entries.
Lia Thomas with Outkick’s Riley Gaines after winning an NCAA title against biological females. (Photo by Rich Von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Thomas, who was at best an average swimmer when competing against men, is no longer with USA Swimming, making it very easy for the court to decide not to change the policy in her favor.
“The panel concludes that since the athlete is not eligible to participate in the ‘elite event’ under USA Swimming policy, let alone compete in a WA meet, which occurs by registering with WA prior to a meet or by establishing a performance that leads to an application for registration as a WA world record, he is simply not entitled to participate with the eligibility to compete in WA meets,” the tribunal said, according to WA media.
“The operational and political demands simply do not fit the current state.”
The U.S. Olympic Trials will begin on June 15 in Indianapolis and, for the first time, will be held on a football field, Lucas Oil Stadium.
In 2022, when ESPN and ABC honored Thomas during Women’s History Month, Thomas sat down with “Good Morning America” and made it clear she had the 2024 Olympics in mind.
“My goal has long been to make the Olympic team, and I would love to see that happen,” Thomas said.
Fortunately, common sense prevailed, and the women will be given the opportunity to compete on the women’s swim team and represent the United States in Paris.
