Lia Thomas, a transgender swimmer from the University of Pennsylvania whose participation on the women’s team sparked national headlines this season, finished last place in the 100-yard freestyle final at the NCAA women’s swimming championships in Georgia on Saturday night.
Virginia freshman Gretchen Walsh set a new pool and program record with her first-place time of 46.05, followed by Alabama senior Morgan Scott and North Carolina State junior Katherine Berkoff with times of 46.78 and 46.95, respectively.
Thomas, who set a program record with her victory in 500 free on Thursday, finished dead last with a time of 48.18, despite entering the finals with the fourth-fastest time.
Thomas’s loss comes amid a national debate over the NCAA’s transgender policy.
The NCAA updated its policy in January to defer to the guidance of each sport’s governing body. The NCAA announced that its policy would become effective in March, starting with the Division I women’s swimming and diving championships.
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USA Swimming updated its policy shortly after requiring transgender athletes who are competing at an elite level to have small levels of testosterone — half of what Thomas was allowed to compete with — for at least 36 months before being eligible. But the NCAA said weeks later that the administrative subcommittee of the Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports (CMAS) decided it wouldn’t alter its testosterone guidance.
"Implementing additional changes at this time could have unfair and potentially detrimental impacts on schools and student-athletes intending to compete in 2022 NCAA women's swimming championships," the organization said in a statement.
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Thomas became the first transgender athlete to win a Division I national title on Thursday when she defeated Olympic medalist and Virginia standout Emma Weyant by just over a second in the 500 free final.
She had a disappointing performance in the 200 free final on Friday, an event she was favored to win, dropping to fifth place with a time of 1:43.40.