Ever since transgender swimmer Lia Thomas won the Division I championship in NCAA Swimming, she has sparked global debate. Not only has the swimmer from the University of Pennsylvania polarized the sporting world, but the political world, too.

Thomas has been at the center of controversy regarding her victory and her eligibility to compete in the women’s division. However, an op-ed writer for NBC News opined that Thomas deserved the same praise as other trailblazers in sport.

In fact, the writer went on to compare Lia Thomas to Jackie Robinson in their opinion.

NBC News writer puts Lia Thomas in the same league as Jackie Robinson

Amid the ongoing debate surrounding trans swimmer Lia Thomas, NBC News writer Cheryl Cooky wrote about how Thomas deserves celebration.

In her piece, Cooky stressed the importance of the “cultural investment in celebrating sports’ firsts”. Cheryl used many historic athletes as examples, including NBA player Jason Collins and MLB legend Jackie Robinson.

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Cooky wrote how Lia Thomas deserves to be embraced “in the history of progress that sports represent, and recognized as the trailblazer that she is”. The piece condemned the naysayers of Thomas for their opinions, which lack scientific evidence between testosterone athletic performance.

“Today, athletes like Jackie Robinson are celebrated as “breaking the color barrier” in sports,” Cooky wrote. Additionally, the piece also mentioned Jason Collins, the first openly gay active player in the NBA.

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Moreover, she also included Timothy LeDuc, the first non-binary US Winter Olympian. In fact, Cooky even mentioned Sarah Fuller, who was the first woman to score in a Power Five college football game.

The comparison to Jackie Robinson sparked outrage

NBC running the piece by Cooky, which compared Lia Thomas to Jackie Robinson, sparked outrage almost immediately. Many took offense to how different the situation was for Robinson, who was the first African American to play in the MLB.

Clearly, it did not sit right with numerous people for the piece to insinuate that Lia stood alongside Robinson in sports history. In fact, in January, a teammate of Thomas claimed that Thomas compared herself to Jackie.

“She compares herself to Jackie Robinson,” the teammate spoke on the condition of anonymity. “(Lia) said she is like the Jackie Robinson of trans sports”. However, Thomas later denied the allegations of the same later, when she spoke to Sports Illustrated.

Do you think it is fair to compare Thomas to Jackie Robinson?

WATCH THIS STORY: Lia Thomas Becomes First Transgender Woman to Win NCAA Gold- Rivals Stage Protest on Podium