The inclusion of male athletes who think they are women has led to several lawsuits on both sides of the issue. On one hand, male athlete Will “Lia” Thomas have sparked a “secret” legal battle in hopes of overturning a rule established by World Aquatics prohibiting males who think they’re “transgender” from competing against women, which Townhall covered.
On the other hand, athletes like former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines filed a lawsuit against the NCAA over its policies that permit athletes like Thomas to compete against women. Gaines, as Townhall covered, tied against Thomas at the NCAA championships. After taking photos, Thomas was permitted to take the trophy home while Gaines left empty handed.
This week, a Minnesota appeals court sent a lawsuit brought by a transgender athlete back to a trial court to determine if “she” was illegally denied entry to compete against women, according to several reports.
Jaycee Cooper, a male who thinks he’s a woman, sued USA Powerlifting in 2021 after he was denied to compete against women in 2018. Cooper claimed that the organization violated the Minnesota Human Rights Act, an anti-discrimination law that encompasses discrimination based on so-called “gender identity” (via CBS News):
Last year, a district court judge found that USA Powerlifting had discriminated against Cooper. USA Powerlifting appealed, and Cooper cross-appealed. In its lengthy Monday decision, the Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed, reversed and sent back parts of the case.
Judge Matthew Johnson wrote: "The circumstantial evidence on which Cooper relies, when viewed in a light most favorable to her, is sufficient to allow a fact-finder to draw inferences and thereby find that USAPL excluded Cooper from its competitions because of her sexual orientation (i.e., transgender status)."
USA Powerlifting’s lead attorney, Ansis Viksnins, told the outlet that the court "corrected some of the mistakes" made by the lower court and gave their side an opportunity "to tell our side of the story" to a jury.
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"USA Powerlifting did not exclude Ms. Cooper because of her gender identity," Viksnins said. "USA Powerlifting excluded her from competing in the women's division because of her physiology. She was born biologically male and went through puberty as a male, and as a result, she has significant strength advantages over other people who would be competing in the women's division."
Last year, Townhall reported how a biological male who identifies as “transgender” set a new powerlifting record in Canada in the women’s category. The athlete, Anne Andres, previously mocked female athletes in the sport.
