Caitlyn Jenner has slammed transgender swimmer Lia Thomas for wanting to compete in the Olympics, saying she has “a huge advantage over the girls.”
The former Olympic champion criticized Thomas’ desire to compete against female swimmers, saying “we have to keep it fair for women”.
She added that it’s “simply not fair” to other competitors since she’s already been through puberty as a male and her Olympic quest “makes the trans community look selfish.”
Thomas, who went from man to woman during college, was criticized for competing in women’s swimming after undergoing hormone replacement therapy.
She has remained defiant, saying in an interview earlier this year she intends to continue swimming and would try to swim in the Olympic trials.
This prompted Jenner to call her “bad publicity” for the trans community in an interview with Dan Wootton on GB News last night.
It came after Thomas (pictured) said she wanted to compete in the Olympic Trials and was hoping to make it to the Olympics
It came after he showed her an interview Thomas did with ABC in May, in which she claimed the effects of testosterone from puberty shouldn’t disqualify her, saying: “There are a lot of differences between female cis athletes, there are cis women who are very tall and very muscular.”
She added that she would try to get to the Olympics, saying: “It has been a goal of mine to swim in the Olympic trials for a very long time and I would love to do it.”
But that goal was blasted by Jenner, who said she was giving the trans community “bad publicity.”
Jenner, who competed in two Olympic Games as a man in the decathlon, told Dan Wootton in GB News last night: “When I listen to her, it’s all about her. It’s not about what is fair in sport.
“She has a huge advantage over the girls, she’s taller, has bigger hands, her cardiovascular system is bigger, she’s gone through male puberty — all those things and it’s just not fair.”
She added that Thomas’s Olympic quest was “bad publicity for the trans community.”
Jenner said, “It makes the trans community look selfish and self-centered. Lia Thomas even said that if you accept me as a woman, you accept me as an athlete, but no, we don’t have to accept that.
Caitlyn Jenner called Lia Thomas “bad publicity” for the trans community in an interview with Dan Wootton on GB News last night
Thomas, who went from male to female while in college, was criticized for competing against women in races
He added that “there are a lot of issues right now,” but “again, we have to keep it fair for women.”
Even if Thomas qualifies for the US Olympic trials, she may not be able to compete in the Games themselves after new rules were introduced by swimming’s world governing body, FINA.
Earlier this year, the organization banned transathletes from competing in elite women’s races if they’ve gone through any part of the male puberty process.
It added it would aim to establish an “open” category to allow swimmers whose gender identity differs from their birth sex to compete.
Jenner added that FINA concluded that it wasn’t just about current hormone levels, and shared her experience of how going through male puberty has brought her benefits.
Jenner said she didn’t bother being called transphobic for her views on the issue because she felt she was on the “right side.”
She said: “I went through male puberty. I was strong, 6ft2. I’m 72 years old and I can still hit the ball 290 yards because my arms and legs are long.
“I can still do things like that. I switched completely 7 years ago, but there’s still a lot left over there!’
Jenner has been criticized by some trans activists for her stance on the matter, but said she doesn’t care about being labeled transphobic.
She said: “I took so much flack. To be honest, I have a thick skin. They can come after me, I really don’t care. I can take any criticism. I feel like I’m on the right page.’