Penn’s Thomas becomes first transgender woman to win NCAAs

Published March 17, 2022 5:37 PM

By CHARLES ODUM
AP Sports Writer

ATLANTA (AP) — Lia Thomas took control in the final 100 yards of the 500-yard freestyle to make history Thursday as the first transgender woman to win an NCAA swimming championship. Thomas, the University of Pennsylvania senior who earlier swam at Penn while transitioning, had a season-best time of 4 minutes, 33.24 seconds. Virginia’s Emma Weyant was second at 4:34.99. The race was close until the final 100 yards, with Weyant and Erica Sullivan of Texas pushing Thomas for the lead. As was the case in Thursday morning in a preliminary win, Thomas was stronger at the end. She won the preliminary race at 4:33.82.

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