Controversial transgender swimmer Lia Thomas is taking secret legal action in a bid to overturn a ban on biological men competing alongside women and hopes to take part in the Paris Olympic trials, according to a report.
Thomas, 24, hired Canadian law firm Tyr to ask the Swiss Court of Arbitration for Sport to overturn rules imposed by World Aquatics after becoming the first openly trans person to win an NCAA Division I title , reported the Telegraph.
She has not competed since 2022, when World Aquatics introduced rules prohibiting anyone who has gone through “any part of male puberty” from participating in the women’s category.
Before that, trans women were allowed to compete if they lowered their testosterone levels.
Tyr describes his staff as “fearless advocates” who have been involved in “high-risk, precedent-setting cases,” but those who come before the CAS are controversially heard behind closed doors, unless those involved agree to publish them. , according to the media.
Trans swimmer Lia Thomas, 24, has launched secret legal action in a bid to overturn a ban on biological men competing alongside women and hopes to take part in the Paris Olympic trials. penn athletics
When Thomas took the case to court in September, World Aquatics requested that it be dismissed because it had not submitted to USA Swimming’s jurisdiction, the Telegraph reported.
A month before Thomas’ NCAA victory in March 2022, USA Swimming imposed stricter regulations for transgender people, stopping short of an outright ban but requiring regular monitoring of such athletes’ testosterone levels.
“It’s been my goal to swim in the Olympic trials for a long time, and I would love to do it,” he told “Good Morning America” less than a month before World Aquatics introduced its own policy in June 2022.
Thomas’ case is unlikely to be heard in time for her to qualify for this summer’s Olympics, according to the outlet.
Lia Thomas on the podium at a previous event. USA TODAY Sports University of Pennsylvania’s Lia Thomas celebrates with her teammates after winning the 400-yard freestyle team relay at the Ivy League Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships at Harvard University. Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports
The deadline to enter the trials is June 4, but she would have to win the case several weeks early to have the opportunity to file in May for times that would be good enough for her to enter the trials that begin on the 15th. June, the Times reported. London reported.
World Aquatics declined to comment on Thomas’ legal challenge.
Its chief executive, Brent Nowicki, said in a statement to the Telegraph: “World Aquatics’ policy on gender inclusion, 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.
It is unknown when Thomas changed from a man to a woman. AP
“World Aquatics remains confident that its gender inclusion policy represents a fair approach and remains absolutely determined to protect women’s sport,” she added.
It is unknown when Thomas transitioned from male to female, but the swimmer competed as a male in November 2019.
She has always denied making the transition to be successful.
“I think the biggest mistake is the reason I transitioned,” he said in 2022. “People will say, ‘Oh, she just transitioned to have an advantage, to be able to win.’ She made the transition to be happy, to be true to myself.”
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Source: vtt.edu.vn