Transgender University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas lost two races at a collegiate swim meet by another transgender competitor, The Daily Mail reported Saturday.
According to their report, Thomas was “crushed” in two races by Iszac Henig, who is a student at Yale University.
“Transgender University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas was crushed twice in a women's swim meet by another transgender competitor who is transitioning from female to male - first in the 100-yard freestyle, where she placed fifth, and then again in the 400-yard freestyle relay.
Competing against Ivy League rivals Dartmouth and Yale, Thomas won the first of her four races by just two seconds - one month after she shattered two women's records with a 38-second margin against her closest competitor. She also narrowly won the 500-yard freestyle by a second, with bystanders telling DailyMail.com that she seemed to be 'coasting' and 'barely trying'.
But stunned parents at the meet held at UPenn's pool in Philadelphia gasped as Yale swimmer Iszac Henig easily beat out his opponents in the women's 100-yard freestyle with a time of 49.57 seconds. Thomas finished fifth with a time of 52.84 seconds.
Henig, a 20-year-old from Palo Alto, California, has delayed hormone treatments to finish his career on Yale's women's team as he transitions from female to male.
In the women's 400-yard freestyle relay, Henig again crushed Thomas and his other competitors, finishing in 50.45 seconds to power Yale to victory in the meet. Thomas finished her leg of the race in 51.94 seconds”
The swim meet on Saturday was reportedly the team’s first since last month, when Thomas broke two national women’s records at a competition in Ohio. In the 1,650-yard freestyle, the runner-up finished 38 seconds behind Thomas.
“DailyMail.com revealed last week that a number of Thomas's teammates had considered boycotting the event over her participation but were worried about being labeled transphobic and banned from the Ivy League championship in February,” the report stated.