In a significant move, the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) has revealed plans to revoke the medals awarded to transgender-identifying swimmer “Lia” Thomas — otherwise known as Will — instead of to female athletes during NCAA competition in 2022. This decision, supporters argue, marks a pivotal step toward addressing concerns about fairness in women’s sports.

The announcement stems from a “landmark” agreement between the Trump administration and UPenn. According to the U.S Department of Education, UPenn will adhere to the following:

• “[R]estore to female athletes all individual UPenn Division I swimming records, titles, or similar recognitions which were misappropriated by male athletes allowed to compete in female categories;
• “[I]ssue a public statement to the University community stating that it will comply with Title IX, specifying that UPenn will not allow males to compete in female athletic programs or occupy Penn Athletics female intimate facilities;
• “The statement will specify that UPenn will adopt biology-based definitions for the words ‘male’ and ‘female’ pursuant to Title IX and consistent with President Trump’s Executive Orders ‘Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism” and “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports’;
• “[P]ost the statement in a prominent location on its main website and on each of its websites for women’s athletics;
• “[R]escind any guidance which violated Title IX, remove or revise any internal and public-facing statements or documents that are inconsistent with Title IX, and notify all staff and women’s athletics of all such rescissions; and
• “[S]end a personalized letter of apology to each impacted female swimmer.”

Concerning the apology letter, a potential recipient could include former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines, whose high-profile encounter with Thomas at UPenn sparked her rise as a leading advocate for protecting women’s and girls’ sports.

Secretary of Education Linda McMahon heralded the decision, stating, “Today is a great victory for women and girls not only at the University of Pennsylvania, but all across our nation. The Department commends UPenn for rectifying its past harms against women and girls, and we will continue to fight relentlessly to restore Title IX’s proper application and enforce it to the fullest extent of the law.” 

A White House official, speaking to The Daily Wire, underscored President Trump’s commitment: “President Trump has been one of the strongest and most consistent champions for protecting women’s sports.” The official further criticized UPenn’s past practices, noting, “In stark contrast, the University of Pennsylvania has repeatedly violated the spirit and letter of Title IX by allowing biological males to compete in women’s athletic programs — undermining decades of progress and the hard-earned achievements of female athletes.”

According to the Associated Press, UPenn had already modified some of their online records — showing athletes holding titles instead of Thomas in events he competed in. UPenn President J. Larry Jameson confirmed recent reports on the matter, stating, “While Penn’s policies during the 2021-2022 swim season were in accordance with NCAA eligibility rules at the time, we acknowledge that some student-athletes were disadvantaged by these rules. We recognize this and will apologize to those who experienced a competitive disadvantage or experienced anxiety because of the policies in effect at the time.”

Moving forward, the Education Department has mandated that UPenn publicly declare it will no longer “allow males to compete in female athletic programs” and must use “biology-based” definitions of male and female — a policy shift in line with upholding the integrity of women’s sports as well as numerous efforts to comply with Title IX regulations.

Paula Scanlan, a former UPenn swimmer, celebrated the announcement. “As a former UPenn swimmer,” she said, “I am also pleased that my alma mater has finally agreed to take not only the lawful path, but the honorable one.” This agreement, she added, “marks a momentous step in repairing the past mistreatment of female athletes, and forging a future where sex discrimination plays no role in limiting girls’ potential.”

Similarly, Gaines explained, “It is my hope that [this decision] demonstrates to educational institutions that they will no longer be allowed to trample upon women’s civil rights, and renews hope in every female athlete that their country’s highest leadership will not relent until they have the dignity, safety, and fairness they deserve.”

In a press release sent to The Washington Stand, the Maryland Family Institute (MFI) stated that it “welcomes the announcement that the University of Pennsylvania has agreed to comply with Title IX and end its enforcement of transgender ideology at the expense of female student’s privacy and opportunity to have their athletic achievements recognized.” MFI explained how UPenn has “infamously pioneered” a “legacy of harm” by allowing Thomas to compete alongside women.

“This is an important victory for truth in government and society,” said MFI’s Legislative Counsel Jonathan Alexandre. “Congress should act now to build on this truth by legally establishing biologically-based definitions of sex.” Echoing this, MFI’s President Jeffrey Trimbath emphasized, “We are thankful to see biological truth vindicated in this case. We are thankful for the protection of women that this news represents, and for the common sense which prevailed.” 

While many are celebrating this decision, some remain skeptical of UPenn’s motives. For example, Jennifer Sey, founder and CEO of XX-XY Athletics, posted on X, “This apology to the female athletes at UPenn sounds like it was made with a gun to their heads. This was not any sort of moment of moral clarity. There was no epiphany. They were forced. They’ve realized nothing about their actions. We keep fighting.”

Similarly, experts at Concerned Women for America (CWA), in communication with TWS, noted that UPenn’s new policy still allows “a student-athlete assigned male at birth” to practice with teams consistent with their gender identity, raising concerns about alignment with NCAA policies that prioritize self-identification over sex-based criteria.

Even so, on X, CWA acknowledged that while “UPenn cannot und[o] the damage they caused to countless female athletes, they are doing what [the NCAA] hasn’t done — admission, apology, restoring awards/titles/records & full compliance with [Trump’s] EO that requires protecting all women’s sports [and] spaces for women only.” The group’s statement affirmed, “CWA strongly supports the resolution agreed to by [UPenn] and the Trump Administration to comply with Title IX, ensuring biological males cannot participate in UPenn women’s sports nor access women’s intimate facilities.”