Lia Thomas of Pennsylvania smiles after winning a preliminary heat in the 500-yard freestyle at the NCAA Ladies Swimming and Diving Championships Thursday, March 17, 2022 at Georgia Tech in Atlanta.
Photo: AP Photo / John Bazemore
ATLANTA (AP) – Lia Thomas took control in the final 100 yards of the 500-yard freestyle to make history Thursday as the first transgender woman to win an NCAA Swimming Championship.
Thomas, the University of Pennsylvania senior who entered the NCAA Ladies Swimming and Diving Championships as the top seed, had a season-best time of 4 minutes, 33.24 seconds.
“I did not have much expectation for this meeting,” said Thomas, a former male swimmer for Penn State. “I was just happy to be here and run and compete the best I could.”
Virginia’s Emma Weyant finished second in 4: 34.99.
Continue on to a gallery of photos of Thomas competing in the NCAA Championships
The race was tight until the final 100 yards, with Weyant and Erica Sullivan of Texas pushing Thomas for the lead. The three swim in lanes three through five, contributing to the drama, with Thomas in the middle.
As with a preliminary victory on Thursday morning, Thomas was stronger in the end. She won the lead at 4: 33.82.
Sullivan finished third at 4: 35.92. Stanford’s Brooke Forde was fourth at 4: 36.18.
Thomas is also the top seed in the 200 Freestyle Friday and is the 10th seed in the 100 Freestyle Saturday.
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