(Headline USA) A former Olympic swimmer blasted transgender swimmer Lia Thomas and argued she lost her spot in the NCAA finals because the organization allowed Thomas to compete against her.
“I would like to address something that is a problem in our sport right now and hurting athletes, especially female swimmers,” Virginia Tech swimmer Reka Gyorgy, who has competed at the Olympics, wrote in a letter to the NCAA.
“I swam the 500 free at NCAA’s on March 17th, 2022, where I got 17th, which means I didn’t make it back to the finals and was first alternate.
“This is my last college meet ever and I feel frustrated,” she continued. “It feels like that final spot was taken away from me because of the NCAA’s decision to let someone who is not a biological female compete.”
WOW: Virginia Tech swimmer Reka Gyorgy says her finals spot was stolen from her by Lia Thomas because of “the @NCAA‘s decision to let someone who is not a biological female to compete.” pic.twitter.com/vrtEfqZ0LW
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) March 20, 2022
“I’m writing this letter right now in hopes that the NCAA will open their eyes and change these rules in the future,” she wrote.
“It doesn’t promote our sport in a good way and I think it is disrespectful against the biologically female swimmers who are competing in the NCAA.”
Several other athletes have spoken out against Lia Thomas’s participation in female athletic competitions, noting that Thomas competed as a man for the University of Pennsylvania’s swimming team for two years before deciding to transition.
“It’s not about excluding transgender women from winning ever,” tennis star Martina Navratilova said last week.
“But it is about not allowing them to win when they were not anywhere near winning as men. But right now, the rules are what they are. Maybe put an asterisk there, if she starts breaking records left and right.”
