- World Aquatics banned transgender women after Thomas won an NCAA title
- She has hired a law firm to carry out her bids at the Court of Arbitration for Sport
Transgender swimmer Lia Thomas has secretly waged a legal battle to overturn the decision banning her from competing against biological female athletes at the international level.
Thomas, 24, has hired Canadian law firm Tyr to carry out her bids at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland, as reported by the Telegraph.
The backlash against Thomas was partly behind World Aquatics’ ban on excluding those who have undergone “any portion of male puberty” from the women’s category.
Thomas, who has not competed since 2022, is so optimistic about her chances that she reportedly hopes to compete in the Paris Olympics. However, her case is unlikely to be heard before the Summer Games start this summer.
World Aquatics told The Telegraph: The World Aquatics Gender Inclusion Policy, adopted by World Aquatics in June 2022, was rigorously developed based on advice from leading medical and legal experts, and in careful consultation with athletes.
Transgender swimmer Lia Thomas has secretly waged a legal battle to overturn the decision banning her from competing with biological female athletes
Thomas did not compete as a man until 2019, and her rankings improved significantly after her gender transition
UPenn women’s swimmers and divers relax on the beach in January 2020. Lia Thomas is circled
‘World Aquatics remains confident that its gender inclusion policy represents a fair approach and remains absolutely committed to protecting women’s sport.’
Thomas did not compete as a man until 2019, and her rankings improved significantly after her gender transition.
She sparked a huge backlash, including from competitors, when she became the first openly transgender person to win a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I title.
Thomas finished in 65th place when covering the same distance in the men’s category.
Three months after her victory, World Aquatics introduced a ban on transgender women.
Under previous rules, transgender women could compete internationally in the women’s category as long as their testosterone levels remained below five nanomoles per liter over a one-year period.
In January 2023, World Athletics announced that they wanted to tighten their policy, but said their ‘preferred option’ was only to lower testosterone levels to 2.5 nmol/L and extend the transition period to two years.
That led to a huge backlash from female athletes and women’s rights activists who wanted a blanket ban on transgender athletes competing with other women.
Following the backlash, World Athletics council members admitted there was ‘little support’ for their original position during a consultation period.
World Athletics’ decision followed that of swimming’s global governing body, FINA, which previously announced a ban on transgender athletes competing in elite women’s races.
