Swimmer Lia Thomas Loses Legal Case to Compete in Olympics
The Facts
American swimmer Lia Thomas will not be allowed to compete at next month's Paris Olympics after the Court of Arbitration for Sport dismissed her request to overturn a ban on transgender athletes from competing in elite women's competitions.
In 2022, World Aquatics, swimming's governing body, banned anyone who hadn't completed their transition by 12 or had undergone "any part of male puberty" from competing in women's races.
The Spin
Thomas' case was thrown out not because it concerned the legitimacy of the ban but because she wasn't eligible to dispute it. World Aquatics is committed to promoting inclusivity and celebrating diversity, which is why it introduced a separate category so swimmers can compete without barriers. While one can support her gender transition out of the pool, it's unfair to ignore Thomas' physical advantage — in endurance, speed, and lung size even after reduced testosterone levels — inside of it.
This is a sad day for sports. By denying Thomas' request to overturn a ban that further alienates transgender sportspersons, increases invasive testing that hurts all women athletes, and is contrary to the Olympic charter and the World Aquatics constitution, the court has added to the discrimination trans people face the world over and given credence to right-wing claims — which aren't backed by any direct or consistent research — that transgender athletes have an unfair advantage over their cisgender peers
