The NCAA swimming competitions saw a controversial season this time around. Lia Thomas became the first transgender woman to win the 500-yard freestyle competition. However, many swimmers and fans opined against her victory. Hence, even weeks later, it remains a subject of interest.

Many claimed her participation in the women’s category gave her an undue advantage and was unfair to other competitors. So to put things into perspective, former NCAA swimmer Kyle Sockwell threw some light onto the situation, revealing Lia’s stats from before she took part in the women’s division.

The talented athlete was an equally good swimmer while in the men’s division, as Sockwell pointed out some interesting points.

Lia Thomas’ time differences

Thomas started swimming in the men’s division during the 2017-2018 season and competed there until recently. She took part in half of the 2019-2020 season as the pandemic canceled the rest of it. However, when restarted, the 2021-22 season saw her diving into the women’s division. Sockwell spoke about Thomas having better times before the penultimate 2019-20 season; the season when Thomas began with Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT).

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He took times from her ‘dual meets’ and compared them between the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons. The 500-yard freestyle saw her post a time of 4:33.40 while she posted a time of 4:35.57 in the 2019-20 season. But, the 1000-yard freestyle saw her posting a time of 9:40.24 and a lesser time of 9:33.37 for the 2019-20 season. These differences are noticeable.

Sockwell further explained how dual meets times are much slower, yet, Thomas had better times for events. Lia Thomas’ time saw her ranked #776 in the country. Back during the 2018-19 season, Thomas ranked #18th in the 1000 freestyle. Sockwell spoke about the data not being used without a disclaimer.

Thomas was a good swimmer

Lia’s 2018-19 season saw her miss the Men’s NCAA Swimming & Diving Championships. Sockwell talked about how the NCAA competition was a tough nut to crack with the top thirty-one (31) Division 1 athletes qualifying in each event.

According to Sockwell, Thomas was a competitive swimmer in the men’s division before she jumped categories. Although she had great times during those meets, it fell short of the Ivy League Championships.

With her performances in the women’s category getting noticed, it is safe to say that she was not a bad swimmer back then. She posted competitive times and set a good pace in her events. Given the times she recorded when she competed in the men’s division, do you think Thomas has an advantage now competing in the women’s division?

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