Leah Thomas on Thursday night became the first transgender athlete to become a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) champion by winning the 500-yard freestyle in Georgia – in front of a silent crowd.
Thomas, 22, scorched her competitors in Atlanta by driving 4 minutes 33:24 in her second race – much to the chagrin of some of her teammates and those in the stands who were silent when she won.
“I try to ignore it as much as possible, try to focus on swimming, what I need to do to prepare for races, and just try to block everything else,” Thomas said after the race when asked. ESPN for a response.
“It means the whole world to be here, to be with my two best friends and teammates, and to be able to compete.”
Thomas also crushed other swimmers in the Ivy League championship last month.
The Texan, who swam on the varsity men’s team for three years before switching in 2019, is now the first transgender athlete to win an NCAA championship. According to one teammate, this award would have been questionable had it been achieved.
Leah Thomas, 22, is seen immediately after her historic victory, which was met with silence by the crowd.
The NCAA celebrated Thomas’ victory on social media by naming a new national champion.
NCAA- Leah Thomas wins the women’s 500 year freestyle.
Parents and those present in the crowd were clearly upset, saying that this was an unfair competition. pic.twitter.com/vpD5cY1z2M
— Sav (@RapidFire_Pod) March 17, 2022
Thomas shines after winning the 500 yard race.
Leah Thomas swims for the University of Pennsylvania Thursday at the NCAA Championships in Atlanta, Georgia. She became the first transgender athlete to win the NCAA Finals.
Thomas, 22, is seen ahead of her race on Thursday, which she also won by taking first place in the final.
Martina Navratilova, hours before the historic feat, urged Thomas to place an asterisk next to her name when she wins women’s races, arguing that racing against biological women is unfair and should be celebrated.
Considered by many to be one of the world’s greatest tennis players, Navratilova spoke out when Thomas won the 500-yard freestyle boat final in Georgia, becoming the first transgender athlete to become an NCAA champion.
Navratilova told News Nation on Thursday that the current rules allowing Thomas to compete as a woman because she completed the required year of treatment to lower her testosterone levels were wrong.
“This is not about excluding transgender women from the winners,” said the 65-year-old athlete.
“But it’s about not letting them win when they weren’t even close to winning as men.”
Martina Navratilova on Thursday opposed Thomas being allowed to compete head-to-head with women, hours before Thomas became the first transgender NCAA champion.
Navratilova, one of the first openly gay athletes, led the way in the 1970s and 80s, but said the Thomas situation was wrong.
“You’re trying to keep it as close as possible to what it would be if you were born into a female biological body,” she said.
“And even saying that, people object to the biological woman. People don’t even want to use those words.
“I do not know what else to say. Besides.
Navratilova suggested that transgender women should be considered separately from those who were born female.
“But the solution, perhaps for now, is to swim the track; you can compete, but you won’t get a medal,” she said.
Because the rules are wrong. But now the rules are what they are.
Maybe put an asterisk there.
Navratilova said there would be serious questions if Thomas, who is nearing her athletic peak, continues to dominate the sport after college.
“If she starts breaking records left and right, Leah will go to the Olympics, hmm…
“Because now she is at the peak of her physical development.
“And in the future, perhaps there should be an open category for everyone, and then for biological women.
“So trans women can compete, but they will compete with men.
“And trans men have a choice.”
RULES FOR TRANSGENDER ATHLETES AND WHEN THEY CAN COMPETE FOR THE GENDER THEY TRANSFER TO
Leah Thomas began taking hormone therapy back in May 2019, when she was still competing among men.
Under US swimming regulations, athletes had to have low testosterone levels for 36 months to compete in women’s competition.
This meant that Thomas would not have qualified for the NCAA Championship if they had followed the US Swimming Rules as they originally promised.
But the NCAA has said it will be allowed to compete because they refuse to accept threshold this year.
Last month, an NCAA committee said, “The subcommittee decided that making further changes at this time could have unfair and potentially detrimental consequences for schools and student-athletes intending to compete in the NCAA women’s swimming championships in 2022.”
However, it is not known what they will do next year.