Transgender swimmer Lia Thomas’ hopes of competing in the Olympics have been dashed after she lost a legal battle challenging a ban on trans women competing in elite women’s swimming.

Thomas was fighting against a 2022 rule that barred anyone who has undergone “any part of male puberty” from competing in women’s categories at the highest levels of the sport.

However, three judges from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) dismissed the 25-year-old’s request.

Transgender swimmer Lia Thomas lost a legal battle challenging a ban on trans women competing in elite women’s swimming

The athlete from Austin, Texas, made headlines a few years back as a member of the University of Pennsylvania women’s swimming team. She made history as the first transgender athlete to win an NCAA Division I national championship, triumphing in the 500-yard freestyle at the 2022 NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships.

Her victory ignited widespread debate and media coverage about the inclusion of transgender athletes in sports. For some, it was a significant milestone for transgender rights and inclusion. Others, however, raised concerns about competitive fairness in women’s sports.

The swimmer made history in 2022, becoming the first transgender woman to win an NCAA swimming championship

The same year she enjoyed success in women’s collegiate swimming, the World Aquatics (WA) banned transgender women who have gone through male puberty from competing in women’s races.

Lia contended that those rules were not only “invalid and unlawful” but also opposed to the Olympic charter and the World Aquatics constitution.

“Trans people don’t transition for athletics,” she said in a Good Morning America interview in 2022. “We transition to be happy, authentic, and our true selves. Transitioning to gain an advantage is not a factor in our decisions.”

“It’s been a goal of mine to swim at Olympic trials for a very long time, and I would love to see that through,” she said in 2022

Thomas fell in love with swimming at the age of four and felt a disconnect from her body as she grew older.

“I didn’t feel like I was a boy,” she said.

“When I was younger, my mom described me as a very happy kid,” she continued. “But in middle school and high school, that happiness shifted due to gender dysphoria from being trans. I didn’t have the language to describe it at the time.”

After graduating in 2022, Thomas set her sights on the Olympics, hoping to make it to the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials.

“I intend to keep swimming,” she told the press. “It’s been a goal of mine to swim at Olympic trials for a very long time, and I would love to see that through.”

However, Wednesday’s ruling diminishes any hope she had of competing in next year’s Paris Olympics.

World Aquatics called the ruling a “major step forward in our efforts to protect women’s sport”

Following the ruling, WA said in a statement that it is “dedicated to fostering an environment that promotes fairness, respect, and equal opportunities for athletes of all genders.”

The organization also reaffirmed its commitment to fairness, stating, “We remain committed to working collaboratively with all stakeholders to uphold the principles of inclusivity in aquatic sports and remain confident that our gender inclusion policy represents a fair approach.”

Athlete Ally, an organization advocating for LGBTQ+ inclusion in sports, called the ruling a “sad day.”

“By dismissing Lia Thomas’ legal challenge against World Aquatics, the CAS has denied her fundamental right to access an effective remedy for acts that violate her human rights,” Hudson Taylor, founder and executive director of Athlete Ally, said in a statement. “This is a sad day for sports and for anyone who believes that trans athletes should have the opportunity for their experiences of discrimination to be heard and adjudicated like everyone else.”

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