University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas becomes first transgender woman to win NCAAs

Thomas, the College of Pennsylvania senior who entered the NCAA ladies’s swimming and diving championships as the highest seed, had a season-best time of 4 minutes, 33.24 seconds.

“I did not have an entire lot of expectation for this meet,” Thomas stated. “I used to be simply pleased to be right here and race and compete one of the best I might.”

Virginia’s Emma Weyant was second at 4:34.99.

The race was shut till the ultimate 100 yards, with Weyant and Erica Sullivan of Texas pushing Thomas for the lead.

As was the case in Thursday morning in a preliminary win, Thomas was stronger on the finish. She received the preliminary race at 4:33.82.

Thomas is also the highest seed within the 200 freestyle Friday and is the tenth seed within the 100 freestyle Saturday.

Thomas is a former male swimmer for Penn. She has adopted NCAA and Ivy League guidelines since she started her transition in 2019 by beginning hormone substitute remedy.

The inclusion of the transgender swimmer created controversy, even throughout the sport. There have been fewer than 10 protesters exterior the Georgia Tech facility, and a few carried banners which learn “Save Girls’s Sports activities” within the stands.

“I attempt to ignore it as a lot as I can,” Thomas stated. “I attempt to concentrate on my swimming .. and simply attempt to block out all the pieces else.”