University of Pennsylvania transgender swimmer Lia Thomas received new support in an Ivy League statement on Thursday. The move comes ahead of a meet this weekend where Thomas is set to compete as a biological male swimmer on the school’s women’s swimming team against conference members Yale and Dartmouth.
“Over the past several years, Lia and the University of Pennsylvania worked with the NCAA to follow all of the appropriate protocols in order to comply with the NCAA policy on transgender athlete participation and compete on the Penn women’s swimming and diving team. The Ivy League has adopted and applies the same NCAA policy,” the conference said in a statement on Twitter Thursday.
The Ivy League releases the following statement of support regarding Penn's Lia Thomas' participation on the women's swimming and diving team. 🌿 pic.twitter.com/wdEDW4ud5O
— The Ivy League (@IvyLeague) January 6, 2022
“The Ivy League reaffirms its unwavering commitment to providing an inclusive environment for all student-athletes while condemning transphobia and discrimination in any form.”
“The league welcomes her participation in the sport of women’s swimming and diving and looks forward to celebrating the success of all of our student-athletes throughout the season,” the statement added.
The Ivy League statement was not the only expression of support for Thomas. The University of Pennsylvania also added its own statement of support for Thomas on Thursday ahead of the upcoming competition.
“Penn Athletics is committed to being a welcoming and inclusive environment for all our student-athletes, coaches and staff and we hold true to that commitment today and in the future,” the Penn Quakers Twitter account shared.
Statement regarding our women’s swimmer, Lia Thomas. #FightOnPenn pic.twitter.com/lvrnBbfeEr
— Penn Quakers (@pennathletics) January 6, 2022
“As a member of the NCAA, Penn is governed by the policies of the national governing body. Lia Thomas has met or exceeded all NCAA protocols over the past two years for a transgender female student-athlete to compete for a women’s team. She will continue to represent the Penn women’s swimming team in competition this season.
“We fully support all the student-athletes and coaches in our swimming & diving program and look forward to the team’s continued success this season,” it added.
Thomas dominated during the latest meet on December 5, leading the Quakers to a second-place finish. The swimmer “won the 1,650 free with a new program, meet and pool record time of 15:59.71. Thomas won the race by more than 38 seconds with teammate Anna Kalandadze finishing second at 16:37.44,” according to Penn Athletics.
The women finished second at the Zippy Invitational this weekend!
📰 https://t.co/YBNCar7e4i#FightOnPenn pic.twitter.com/k7kmnk3iK9
— Penn Swimming & Diving (@PennSwimDive) December 6, 2021
Thomas swimming on the women’s team has been a point of controversy nationwide, including for fellow team members. The Daily Wire previously reported:
Several women on the University of Pennsylvania swim team considered boycotting their final home meet in protest transgender teammate Lia Thomas’ physical advantages and dominance.
The women ultimately decided not to go through with the boycott, the Daily Mail reported, fearing they would be banned from the Ivy League championship. The women also discussed participating in a false start.
“They’ve been ignored by both Penn and the NCAA, and there is a feeling among some of the girls that they should make some sort of statement, seize the opportunity while they have a spotlight on them to make their feelings about the issue known,” a source close to the team told the Mail.
The source also told the Mail that the female teammates are looking to show their opposition to the NCAA rules that allowed Thomas to compete on the men’s team for three years and then compete on the women’s team after a year of hormone therapy.