Penn erasing Lia Thomas' records signals more erasure of trans athletes is coming
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/other/penn-erasing-lia-thomas-records-signals-more-erasure-of-trans-athletes-is-coming/ar-AA1I8gRU?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=27f4d7d4d5c84f1cfced373993fe73aa&ei=22
Story by Karleigh Webb (7 July 2025)
On Tuesday, the University of Pennsylvania agreed to put an asterisk next to the records set by trans swimmer Lia Thomas.
In 2020, Thomas ended her senior season with a national champion, swimming through controversy because she is trans and swims fast.
An example of this can be seen immediate on the Penn Women's Swimming webpage. The list of records has removed Thomas, and now includes a note at the end: "Competing under eligibility rules in effect at the time, Lia Thomas set program records in the 100, 200 and 500 freestyle during the 2021-22 season."
In addition to the demotion to an "asterisk" included, Penn agreed to send a letter of apology to athletes Thomas competed against.
This is most galling of all the provisions of the agreement.
Penn, along with the Ivy League and the NCAA, should be apologizing to Lia Thomas. During that 2022 season, she was left to deal with a deluge of anti-trans press without support and the silence remains to this day.
The potential effects to come chill me the bone. According a lawsuit brought against the NCAA by anti-trans-athlete activists, the plaintiffs seek to eliminate any historical record of trans athletes existing.