Lia Thomas
American swimmer (born 1999)
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Key Takeaways
- Lia Catherine Thomas (born May 1999) is an American swimmer and the first openly transgender athlete to win an NCAA Division I national championship, having won the women's 500-yard freestyle event in 2022, before being barred from competing in women's events by World Aquatics.
- Early life and education Thomas was born in May 1999 and grew up in Austin, Texas.
- Thomas began swimming at the age of five, and was sixth in the state high school swimming championships for boys' events while competing for Westlake High School.
- Thomas began to question her gender identity towards the end of high school, and came out as transgender to her family during the summer of 2018 after her freshman year at Penn.
Lia Catherine Thomas (born May 1999) is an American swimmer and the first openly transgender athlete to win an NCAA Division I national championship, having won the women's 500-yard freestyle event in 2022, before being barred from competing in women's events by World Aquatics. Thomas's career has been a part of the public debate about transgender women in women's sports.
In July 2025, after the second Trump administration had previously cut the University of Pennsylvania's federal funding in March 2025, UPenn agreed to issue a public statement and update University swimming records based on the Trump administration's changed interpretation of Title IX, while still crediting Thomas with having set certain records in the 2021–2022 season in accordance with the eligibility guidelines at the time.
Early life and education
Thomas was born in May 1999 and grew up in Austin, Texas. She has an older brother. Thomas began swimming at the age of five, and was sixth in the state high school swimming championships for boys' events while competing for Westlake High School. In 2017, she enrolled at the University of Pennsylvania, graduating in 2022 with plans to attend law school. Thomas began to question her gender identity towards the end of high school, and came out as transgender to her family during the summer of 2018 after her freshman year at Penn.
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