Former UPenn swimmer reflects on being teammates with Lia Thomas amid Trump admin victory over university

Margot Kaczorowski and Ellen Holmquist, former teammates of trans swimmer Lia Thomas, join 'Fox & Friends' with their attorney to react to the University of Pennsylvania's decision, saying 'we have a long way to go' in the fight for women's sports.

Former University of Pennsylvania swimmer Monika Burzynska said she was assigned the locker next to Lia Thomas when the transgender athlete joined the women's swim team in 2021. Burzynska previously knew the athlete as Will Thomas, a member of the men's swimming team at UPenn. 

"He wasn't very social," Burzynska told Fox News Digital, adding she had only ever had short, passing conversations with Thomas. 

She thought Thomas had already graduated when her team was dealt the news that the athlete would be transitioning to join the women's team starting in the 2021-22 season. 

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University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas poses with teammates Hannah Kannan, Camryn Carter and Margot Kaczorowski after winning the 400-yard freestyle relay during the Ivy League Womens Swimming and Diving Championships on Feb. 19, 2022, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. (Kathryn Riley/Getty Images)

When that season eventually began, and Thomas became a fixture in the women's locker room, Burzynska often retreated to the corner of the room to change. Other times, Burzynska timed exactly when she changed to coincide with when Thomas showered. Eventually, Burzynska opted to only change in the stalls or in the family locker across the hall. 

"Around Lia, I wasn't going to risk anything," Burzynska said, regarding the possibility of the trans athlete seeing her undress.

Burzynska has never spoken out about her experience of being on a team with Thomas until