World Aquatics: ‘Major step to protect women’s sport’
Lia Thomas, the American swimmer who gained worldwide recognition as the first transgender athlete to win an NCAA college title in March 2022, has lost a legal case against World Aquatics at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, effectively ending her hopes of competing in the upcoming Paris Olympics.
The 25-year-old remains barred from competing in the female category, as she failed to overturn rules introduced by the swimming governing body in the summer of 2022. These rules prohibit individuals who have undergone “any part of male puberty” from participating in the female category.
Thomas argued that these rules should be declared “invalid and unlawful,” contending they were in violation of the Olympic Charter and the World Aquatics constitution. However, the court’s 24-page decision concluded that Thomas was “simply not entitled to engage with eligibility to compete in WA competitions” since she is no longer a member of US swimming.
World Aquatics welcomed the news, calling it “a major step forward in our efforts to protect women’s sport.”
“World Aquatics is dedicated to fostering an environment that promotes fairness, respect, and equal opportunities for athletes of all genders, and we reaffirm this pledge”
World Aquatics
The new rules were introduced by World Aquatics after Lia Thomas won the NCAA gold in the women’s 500-yard freestyle in 2022, beating Olympic silver medalist Emma Weyant by 1.75 seconds.
In a scientific document that informed its decision, World Aquatics stated that swimmers like Thomas retain significant physical advantages—such as endurance, power, speed, strength, and lung size—from undergoing male puberty, even after reducing their testosterone levels through medication.
While World Aquatics was ready to defend the scientific basis of its rules at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), the hearing focused solely on whether Thomas, who is no longer a member of US Swimming, had the right to challenge these rules.
On Wednesday, the court ruled that Thomas had no standing to contest World Aquatics’ transgender policy. A key paragraph from the ruling stated: “The panel concludes that since the Athlete is not entitled to participate in an ‘Elite Event’ within the meaning of USA Swimming Policy, let alone to compete in a WA competition, which occurs upon registration with WA prior to a competition or upon setting a performance which leads to a request for registration as a WA world record, she is simply not entitled to engage with eligibility to compete in WA competitions.
“The policy and the operational requirements are simply not triggered by her current status.”
World Aquatics insists it is striving to be inclusive and has introduced an “open” category for transgender swimmers. However, plans to debut this category at the Berlin World Cup last October were canceled after no entries were received for any of the 50m and 100m races across all strokes, which were to take place alongside male and female races.
