A biological male has been nominated for the NCAA Woman of the Year Award.
University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas — a biological male who claims to be female — made headlines after shattering women’s swimming records last year and winning the women’s 500-yard freestyle in NCAA Division I championship in March.
Last week the NCAA listed Thomas among the 577 athletes nominated for NCAA Woman of the Year Award.
The NCAA established the Woman of the Year Award in 1991 to honor female athletes who have “distinguished themselves in their community, in athletics and in academics throughout their college careers.”
NCAA member schools are encouraged to nominate their top graduating female student-athletes for the Woman of the Year Award. The NCAA will recognize the award winner in January of 2023, following a lengthy selection process.
The story underscores once again how ignoring basic biological realities about male athletes and female athletes robs women of opportunities to receive recognition for their achievements.
As John Stonestreet wrote in 2021, “This sort of let’s-all-pretend-we-don’t-know-what’s-happening groupthink isn’t good for college sports or for women’s rights. It’s not good for Lia Thomas, his teammates, or his competitors. No matter how fast he swims, no man really breaks a women’s record.”
That is why the Arkansas Legislature passed Act 461 of 2021, The Fairness in Women’s Sports Act, by Sen. Missy Irvin (R — Mountain View) and Rep. Sonia Barker (R — Smackover). The law prevents male student athletes from competing against girls in women’s athletics.
Letting males compete in girls’ sports reverses 50 years of advances for women. It hampers girls’ abilities to compete for athletic scholarships, and it hurts their professional opportunities as adults.
Act 461 is a good law that protects fairness in women’s sports in Arkansas.
Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.