After becoming the first transgender athlete to win a Division I national championship on Thursday, University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas tied for fifth place in the 200-yard freestyle at the NCAA swimming championships.
Stanford junior Taylor Ruck set a McAuley Aquatic Center record with a 1:41.12 time to win the national championship. Her time was a little over two seconds behind Missy Franklin’s NCAA record that she set in 2015.
“There’s been chatter about Lia being here, but I just try to zone everything out. I was excited to be able to race someone who goes so fast,” Ruck told ESPN after the race.