Transgender swimmer Lia Thomas stays the course as NCAA changes eligibility rules [View all]

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Shaking out her arms in bursts of circular punches into the air in front of her, Penn swimmer Lia Thomas stepped up to the starting blocks for her second race of the day, the 200-yard freestyle. On Saturday at Harvard's Blodgett Pool, it was quiet. And not just in the way it is before the start of a race.

Everything around Thomas had been so loud in recent weeks -- a cacophony of (mostly) criticism that began in December after her record-setting performance in Akron, Ohio, at the Zippy Invitational. Critics have argued that Thomas, a transgender woman, shouldn't be allowed to compete in the women's category.

Thomas plunged into the pool as the home crowd cheered on the Harvard swimmers and waved crimson and white pom-poms. There were no boos at the start, finish or anytime in between.

At the last meet Thomas swam, at her home pool at Penn, two protesters gathered outside with large posters. There were no protesters Saturday, though there was an increased security presence inside and outside the pool deck "out of an abundance of caution," a Harvard spokesperson said. Reporters were barred from speaking to swimmers and coaches from either team.

https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/33125265/transgender-swimmer-lia-thomas-stays-course-ncaa-changes-eligibility-rules