Legendary Summer Olympics swimmer Donna de Varona thinks what transgender swimmer Lia Thomas is doing isn’t fair. Recently, Donna de Varona made some transgender comments regarding Thomas competing with biological women in the same categories. Recall that in 2022, Thomas became the first transgender NCAA champion in Division I US collegiate history. But in June 2022, World Aquatics voted to restrict trans women who had undergone male puberty from competing in women’s races. It also created an open category for which transgender athletes would be eligible.ย
However, in January 2024, Thomas lodged a case with the CAS in a bid to overturn the ban. She argued that the provisions were invalid, unlawful, and also discriminatory. After five months, the court finally arrived at a decision on Wednesday. Unfortunately for transgender swimmer Lia Thomas, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled in World Aquatics’ favor. The decision will prevent the American from having any chance of competing at the Paris Olympics, beginning on July 26. Amid the update, Varona shared her thoughts on Thomas’s failed legal battle. Speaking with TMZ, she revealed Thomas wasn’t going to win as she never had a U.S. Aquatics membership card.
Varona further noted that World Aquatics was trying to accommodate transgender swimmers. However, it was interesting that none of the athletes signed up to compete in the new category specifically for trans swimmers. According to her, what trans athletes like Thomas only wanted was to compete against biological women, which was unfair. The decorated swimmer said she’d been tracking the number of podium spots where trans athletes had taken spots from biological women. According to her, there were at least 1000 instances, which was outrageous. Overall, Varona called for fairness in athletics. Meanwhile, Thomas has yet to respond to Donna de Varona’s transgender comments. But one thing is certain: the swimmer will be forced to watch the Summer Olympics from home.
