(Paris) Transgender American swimmer Lia Thomas has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to challenge the policy of the International Federation which has the effect of excluding her from women’s competitions, the CAS announced on Friday.
The body “confirms the registration of the request for arbitration of American transgender swimmer Lia Thomas, which aims to challenge certain parts of World Aquatics’ policy regarding eligibility for men’s and women’s competitions,” writes the CAS in a communicated.
Born male and having begun her transition in 2019, Lia Thomas became in March 2022 the first transgender swimmer to win a university title in the United States. Her results had led to heated controversy, with her detractors believing that having competed as a man in the past, Lia Thomas benefited from an unfair physiological advantage.
The international federation (World Aquatics) then decided to create an “open category” for transgender people in addition to the women’s and men’s events, while limiting its women’s categories to swimmers who became women before puberty.
“Mme Thomas recognizes that fairness is a legitimate sporting objective and that the practice of swimming by transgender women should be regulated to some extent,” explains the CAS press release.
“Nevertheless, Mme Thomas contends that the contested provisions are invalid and unlawful since they discriminate against him in violation of the Olympic Charter, the World Aquatics Constitution and Swiss law. »
“Such discrimination cannot be justified as necessary, reasonable or proportionate to achieve a legitimate sporting objective,” said the 25-year-old swimmer.
No date has yet been set for the hearing, specifies the CAS.