We recently covered the uproar in the women’s collegiate swimming world over transgender swimmer Lia Thomas. Multiple University of Pennsylvania records have been “shattered” by Thomas and several female swimmers have been knocked out of the competition because of the decidedly unfair advantage Thomas’ male anatomy provides. But the NCAA recently adopted bizarre rules to provide accommodations for transgender swimmers that prevent any action from being taken to bring the situation under control. This story apparently came as a bridge too far for USA Swimming official Cynthia Millen, who resigned from her position officiating collegiate swim meets last week. She ended her more than thirty-year career as a swimming official saying she “can’t support” the idea of biological males being allowed to compete against female athletes. (NY Post)

A USA Swimming official resigned in protest of transgender swimmer Lia Thomas, saying she can’t back a sport that allows “biological men” to compete alongside women.

Cynthia Millen, who had officiated USA Swimming meets for three decades, stepped down ahead of last week’s U.S. Paralympics Swimming National Championships in Greensboro, N.C.

“I can’t do this,” Millen wrote in her resignation letter, the Washington Examiner reported Thursday. “I can’t support this.”

Millen has spent her career acting as a champion for women’s and girls’ sports, including pushing for better funding and educational opportunities for aspiring girls through sports programs. She apparently hopes that she will set an example for other officials to follow her lead and put more pressure on the women’s collegiate sports community. “There are no swim meets if there are no officials,” she said.

In her resignation letter, Millen said that she would deem Lia Thomas ineligible to compete if she were officiating one of those meets. The problem is, USA Swimming doesn’t oversee any matches that Thomas takes part in. Those are all handled by the NCAA which has fully bought into the whole transgender craze.

Because of that fact, Millen’s resignation won’t have any direct impact on Thomas’ continued ability to “dominate” the actual women in these competitions. If enough officials in the women’s divisions of the NCAA followed suit, however, the organization may be faced with a decision to change its policy.

Millen’s complaints are no doubt already leading to moves by activist groups to “cancel” her and label her as transphobic. (Shen can join the club currently headed by J.K. Rowling of Harry Potter fame.) But there’s nothing remotely transphobic about Millen’s statements. She’s simply pointing out scientific, biological facts. A year or so of testosterone suppression has done virtually nothing to reduce the innate biological advantage enjoyed by Lia Thomas. There has been very little reduction in muscle mass or lung capacity, not to mention the longer, stronger limbs. And the times being posted in these various “record-smashing” events (when compared to the times posted when Thomas was still competing in the men’s division) are all the proof you need of that.

If the NCAA doesn’t reverse their position on this issue it’s going to roll back decades of work that allowed female athletes an even playing field (in some cases literally) where they can demonstrate their prowess and go on to both collegiate and professional careers in sports. And the NCAA will have no one but themselves to blame.