❓WHAT HAPPENED: The University of Pennsylvania has agreed to ban transgender women from its women’s sports teams, resolving a federal civil rights investigation centered on transgender swimmer William “Lia” Thomas.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: The University of Pennsylvania, “Lia” Thomas, the U.S. Department of Education, and female athletes.
📍WHEN & WHERE: The resolution was announced on Tuesday, following an investigation launched in February 2025, regarding events during the 2021–2022 season.
💬KEY QUOTE: “The Department commends UPenn for rectifying its past harms against women and girls, and we will continue to fight relentlessly to restore Title IX’s proper application and enforce it to the fullest extent of the law.” – Linda McMahon
🎯IMPACT: The agreement sets a precedent for enforcing biology-based definitions of sex in athletics and pressures other institutions to follow suit.
The University of Pennsylvania has agreed to ban transgender biological males from its women’s sports teams, resolving a federal civil rights investigation centered on former swimmer William “Lia” Thomas. The U.S. Department of Education announced the voluntary agreement Tuesday, stating that Penn violated Title IX by allowing Thomas to compete in women’s events during the 2021–2022 season.
As part of the resolution, Penn will reinstate Division I swimming records and titles to athletes displaced by Thomas’s victories and issue personalized apology letters to each of them, per the Department of Education. The university must adopt “biology-based” definitions of male and female in athletics and publicly commit to barring “males from competing in female athletic programs.”
Education Secretary Linda McMahon called the outcome a “victory for women and girls,” signaling a more aggressive federal stance on enforcing Title IX based on biological sex. She stated: “The Department commends UPenn for rectifying its past harms against women and girls, and we will continue to fight relentlessly to restore Title IX’s proper application and enforce it to the fullest extent of the law.”
Riley Gaines, host of the Gaines for Girls podcast and former University of Kentucky swimmer, expressed her support for the agreement, saying: “From day one, President Trump and Secretary McMahon made it clear that protecting women and girls is a top priority—and today’s agreement with UPenn is proof of that commitment in action.” She added, “This Administration isn’t just talking about women’s equality, but instead actively defending it.”
The agreement pressures other universities and athletic organizations to align with the administration’s interpretation of Title IX. The NCAA’s response, or lack thereof, could shape future legal and policy battles over transgender inclusion in sports.
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