Lia Thomas' future murkier as USA Swimming releases new policy, Penn teammates express support

Fox News contributor Tammy Bruce discusses the fight for fairness in women’s sports

Lia Thomas’ swimming future still remains unclear as USA Swimming released its Athlete Inclusion, Competitive Equality and Eligibility Policy on Tuesday, while her teammates released a joint statement backing their fellow competitor.

The new policy was published in USA Swimming’s operating policy manual on its website, and the organization later issued a press release on the issue. The new guidelines come as the transgender swimmer’s prominence in the pool has come under fire and a debate rages over how fair it is for her to be swimming against other biological females.

"While recognizing the need for the aforementioned guidelines in elite competition, sport is an important vehicle for positive physical and mental health, and, for this reason, USA Swimming remains steadfast in its continued commitment to greater inclusivity at the non-elite levels," the organization said.

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"In order to balance these two priorities, specific guidelines have been developed for both non-elite and elite athletes and elite events. At the non-elite level, an inclusive process has been established by which an athlete can elect to change their competition category in order for them to experience the sport of swimming in a manner that is consistent with their gender identity and expression," it continued.

"At the elite level, a policy has been created for transgender athlete participation in the U.S. that relies on science and medical evidence-based methods to provide a level-playing field for elite cisgender women, and to mitigate the advantages associated with male puberty and physiology. Elite athletes shall