Lia Thomas, a famous transgender swimmer, has lost her legal case against World Aquatics at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), ending her hopes of competing in the upcoming Paris Olympics.
The 25-year-old remains banned from swimming in the female category after failing to overturn rules introduced by swimming’s governing body in 2022.
These rules deny anyone who has undergone “any part of male puberty” from competing in the female category.
Thomas said that these rules were “invalid and unlawful” as they violated the Olympic Charter and the World Aquatics constitution.
However, the court concluded in a 24-page decision that Thomas was “simply not entitled to engage with eligibility to compete in World Aquatics competitions” since she is no longer a member of US swimming.
World Aquatics is happy with the decision, calling it “a major step forward in our efforts to protect women’s sport”.
The rules were introduced after Thomas won NCAA gold in the women’s 500-yard freestyle, beating Olympic silver medalist Emma Weyant by 1.75 seconds.
A scientific document supporting the decision wrote that swimmers like Thomas retain physical advantages from male puberty, such as endurance, power, speed, strength, and lung size, even after reducing their testosterone levels through medication.
World Aquatics spoke of its efforts to be inclusive, introducing an “open” category for transgender swimmers.
However, plans to debut this category at the Berlin World Cup were cancelled because of a lack of entries last October.
Compiled by Staff Writer
Pictured above: Leah Thomas.
Source: X
