Lia Thomas failed in her attempt to overturn the ban on transgender swimmers (Picture: Getty)
Lia Thomas’ former teammate has demanded an apology from the transgender swimmer after she lost her legal battle against rules that prevented her from competing in elite women’s races.
Thomas made headlines back in 2022 when she became the first transgender swimmer to win an American collegiate title.
Shortly afterwards, World Aquatics (WA) implemented a rule change seeking to ban transgender swimmers from the female category if they had undergone part of male puberty.
Having swum for Pennsylvania’s men’s team prior to transitioning and undergoing hormone therapy, Thomas was affected by the rule change which essentially ended her hopes of one day competing in elite races such as the Olympics.
Thomas launched a legal challenge to overturn the ban at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) on the grounds of discrimination but saw her case dismissed earlier this week.
Reacting to the news, Thomas’s former teammate Paula Scanlan celebrated the decision and demanded an apology from the 25-year-old.
‘Okay, but is anyone going to apologize for forcing us to undress with him 18 times a week?’ she said on X.
Paula Scanlan, former University of Pennsylvania swimmer, testifies during the House Judiciary Subcommittee
Announcing their decision, Cas said that Thomas ‘lacked standing to challenge the policy’ as she was not a member of USA swimming or competing in WA events when she launched proceedings.
The court therefore suggested that she was ‘not sufficiently affected’ by the rules to be able to challenge them.
Following the decision, Thomas released a brief statement describing the outcome as ‘deeply disappointing’.
‘Blanket bans preventing trans women from competing are discriminatory and deprive us of valuable athletic opportunities that are central to our identities. The CAS decision should be seen as a call to action to all trans women athletes to continue to fight for our dignity and human rights,’ she added.
Lia Thomas was the first transgender swimmer to win an American collegiate title (Picture: Getty)
WA, meanwhile, said the ruling represented 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,’ a statement said.
‘Our policies and practices are continuously evaluated to ensure they align with these core values, which led to the introduction of our open category.
‘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.’
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