The College Fix

The governor said the Florida native is the real winner of the NCAA swimming championship

Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis said that University of Virginia swimmer Emma Weyant is the “rightful winner” of the NCAA 500-yard freestyle championship, not Penn swimmer Lia Thomas.

Thomas competed as a male swimmer on the Ivy League university’s team before taking testosterone suppressants. Thomas now competes against female swimmers and won an NCAA championship last week. Weyant (right) is an Olympian medalist who finished in second place.

DeSantis signed a proclamation (below) that said the Sunshine State “disapproves of the NCAA elevating ideology over biology, and takes offense at the NCAA trying to make others complicit in a lie.”

By allowing men to compete in women’s sports, the NCAA is destroying opportunities for women, making a mockery of its championships, and perpetuating a fraud.

In Florida, we reject these lies and recognize Sarasota’s Emma Weyant as the best women’s swimmer in the 500y freestyle. pic.twitter.com/tBmFxFE3q6

— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) March 22, 2022

“By allowing men to compete in women’s sports, the NCAA is destroying opportunities for women, making a mockery of its championships, and perpetuating a fraud,” Governor DeSantis wrote on Twitter.

“In Florida, we reject these lies and recognize Sarasota’s Emma Weyant as the best women’s swimmer in the 500y freestyle,” the governor said.

MORE: NCAA releases new ‘transgender student-athlete’ policy

IMAGE: Congress; UVA Swimming

Like The College Fix on Facebook / Follow us on Twitter