Former male Olympian, transgender Caitlyn Jenner said that University of Pennsylvania transgender swimmer Lia Thomas should not “be able to compete” in the NCAA.
“From my standpoint, the immediate thing to do is I don’t think she should be able to compete at the highest level in the NCAA,” Jenner said Friday.
Sixteen members of the university’s women’s swim team sent a letter to the school that said their transgender teammate “should not be allowed to compete in the collegiate championship next month.” The letter argued Thomas has an “unfair advantage” over the competition in the women’s category.
The former Olympian said that she respects Lia Thomas’ “right to live her life authentically,” however Jenner agreed that when it comes to “fairness,” “biological boys should not compete against women.”
“We have to protect women’s sports,” adding that the NCAA’s rules on testosterone levels do not work.
“Lia Thomas in her event as a guy, she was ranked 462 in the world,” the former gubernatorial candidate of California said. “As a woman, she’s ranked number one in the world, so obviously it’s not working. So, they need to change the rules. Well, they [NCAA] kicked the can down the road a few weeks ago and said that the governing bodies are going to make the rules.”
“USA swimming came in and actually came in with a lot tougher rules on testosterone levels that have to be more comparable to what a woman has, and I think that’s a good thing,” Jenner added. “So Lia Thomas may not be able to compete in the NCAA, we will see, but it’s the rules.”
Jenner said it’s simply not fair for Thomas to compete at this level.
“From my standpoint, the immediate thing to do is, I don’t think she should be able to compete at the highest level in the NCAA,” Jenner explained. “I just don’t think it’s fair. So, I have no problem with that. Let’s rethink this thing and we will go from there.”
