The University of Pennsylvania has agreed to block trans athletes from participating in women’s sports after swimmer Lia Thomas conducted a federal civil rights investigation.
The U.S. Department of Education announced the deal, saying the Ivy League agency will apologize and restore titles and records to female athletes who have “stolen” by male athletes.
The university said it will update its records in the 2021-22 season to “indicate who will keep records based on current eligibility criteria”, but did not say whether Thomas’s records would be deleted.
Thomas became the first interathlete to win the highest national college championship in March 2022.
The deal marks President Donald Trump’s latest development for trans athletes participating in sports. A few days after taking office, he signed an executive order to try to prevent trans women from participating in women’s sports.
this How many universities are His administration investigated possible violations of Title IX, a 1972 civil rights law that prohibits gender-based discrimination in any educational program or activity that receives federal funding.
Two months later, the Trump administration suspended $175 million (£127 million) of federal funding to its trans athlete policy.
Under Tuesday’s deal, universities must adhere to the “biology-based definition” of men and women, consistent with the president’s execution order, the Education Department said.
“Today’s resolution agreement with Upenn is another example of Trump’s action,” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a statement.
“Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, Upenn agreed to apologize for his past IX violations and ensure that women’s sports are protected for future generations of female athletes in college.”
The University of Pennsylvania said its previous policies were consistent with the then National University Athletic Association (NCAA) eligibility criteria, but “we acknowledge that certain student-athletes are disadvantaged due to these rules.”
“We recognize this and apologize to those who have suffered from competition or experienced anxiety due to policies that were in effect at the time,” a statement on its website said.
The school’s change came a few years after Thomas competed in Upenn – first lasting for three seasons with the school’s men’s team, before starting the hormone replacement therapy in spring 2019.
Thomas competed in the women’s swimming team in 2022, breaking school swimming records and releasing the fastest time for any female swimmer. Since then, she has graduated and no longer attended college.
She also noted that the transgender population of college athletes is “very small.” The NCAA said there were about 10 athletes.
“I think the biggest misunderstanding is the reason for my transition. I transition to happiness, being true to myself,” Thomas told ABC and ESPN in 2022.
Last year, Thomas took legal action to re-enter elite women’s sports competitions, but the Swiss Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected the case.
After two years of managing world water sports, vote to ban trans women if they experience any part of male adolescence.
The Human Rights Movement, the largest political group for LGBT rights in the United States, issued a statement criticizing the deal.
“The American people deserve a laser dedicated to ensuring every student thrives,” said spokesman Brandon Wolf.
“Instead, this government is obsessed with making life harder for young people, replacing trans people so that they can attack independent institutions.”
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