Thu, July 31, 2025
Judge stays former Penn swimmers’ Title IX lawsuit
On Tuesday, federal judge William Young halted court proceedings on a lawsuit filed by three former University of Pennsylvania (Penn) swimmers on February 4 after the Ivy League university allowed its transgender athlete Lia Thomas to compete in the 2022 Women’s Ivy League Swimming and Diving Championships, according to The Daily Pennsylvanian.
The former swimmers: Grace Estabrook, Margot Kaczorowski and Ellen Holmquist are also taking legal action against the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The Ivy League’s championships are considered part of the NCAA's Division I level. The Ivy League and Harvard University, which hosted the event, were dismissed from the lawsuit by the court even though the former swimmers argue that they also violated Title IX.
Title IX is a U.S. federal civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in any educational program or activity that receives federal funding. It was implemented as part of the Education Amendments of 1972. Some argue that in order to prevent discrimination against women, gender should be based solely on sex assigned at birth.
Lia Thomas won the 200-yard freestyle and the 500-yard freestyle, setting Ivy League records in the 200 freestyle and breaking Blodgett Pool records in both events, according to ESPN. She also helped Penn win the 400-freestyle relay, setting a new pool record and marking their first relay win in program history.
The plaintiffs argue that they were denied “equal opportunities as women to compete and win while being denied the opportunity to protect their privacy in separate and equal locker rooms.”
The lawsuit has been stayed pending the ruling of a similar case, Gaines v. NCAA. Former University of Kentucky NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines filed a lawsuit against the NCAA’s former eligibility policies for transgender athletes. Established in 2010, former NCAA guidelines allowed transgender men to compete on men's teams immediately, and transgender women to compete on women's teams after one year of hormone therapy. Gaines argues that transgender women should not have been able to enter the women’s category at all.
Penn attorneys may argue for dismissal if the case continues. Even though Penn and the NCAA have since updated their rules to align with Trump’s executive order ‘Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,’ and now abide by Title IX as understood by the Department of Education (DOE) which, like Trump, views gender as solely biological, Title IX used to be interpreted differently. Title IX used to also prohibit discrimination based on gender identity, meaning transgender students were treated consistent with their gender identity. Therefore, Penn argues that the plaintiffs “cannot establish causation against Penn” and that they “failed to plead that they suffered a concrete injury related to their claims.” The swimmers also did not directly encounter Thomas in the locker room, as reported by The Daily Pennsylvanian.
This is also partly why Harvard University was dismissed; it followed standing policies when hosting the event.
On July 1, Penn prohibited transgender women from the women’s sport category after reaching a settlement with the Trump administration. The university was found guilty of violations after a DOE civil rights investigation, and Trump withheld $175 million in federal funding from Penn as it allowed Lia Thomas on its women’s swim team. Therefore, the university had to reach an agreement. However, for the reasons aforementioned, this does not necessarily mean that the plaintiffs have a stronger case against Penn. The NCAA aligned itself with Trump’s executive order in February.
UPenn will now also provide sex-based locker rooms and bathrooms so transgender women cannot use the same changing and toilet facilities as biological women.
Furthermore, individual Division 1 swimming records and titles will be re-awarded to female athletes who previously missed out due to transgender athletes. The university must also issue written apologies to all female swimmers who initially missed out.
UPenn expressed that it will protect women from “gender ideology extremism” by implementing these changes. It voiced: “The University will not delegate its obligation to comply with Title IX to an external association or other entity and it will not contract with, or arrange with any third party entity to provide benefits of the University's athletics programs, if that third-party entity is acting in violation of Title IX.”
It has also recently been announced that the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) has banned transgender women from women’s sport, stating that it also has an “obligation to comply” with Trump’s executive order.
It is expected that president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Kirsty Coventry will ban transgender athletes and athletes with a Difference of Sex Development (DSD) from the female category.
The former swimmers’ court filing can be found here.
