Legislation aimed at banning transgender women from competing on women's high school and collegiate athletic teams in Pennsylvania would have affected University of Pennsylvania transgender swimmer Lia Thomas, according to the bill's sponsor, state Rep. Barbara Gleim, on Newsmax.
''It would impact that, yes, and it would impact probably middle school on up,'' Gleim, a Republican, told Monday's ''National Report.''
''And any competitive sport that women compete in, including feeder programs as well, so that's where this would go because you have to protect the whole system.''
The bill faces opposition from LGBTQ advocates, and Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, is expected to veto it should it reach his desk.
Gleim is sponsoring the legislation, House Bill 972, with four other women. It would require school sports teams to be explicitly designated as male, female or coed and would be based on an athlete's biological sex at birth.
It also says that teams designated for women or girls ''may not be open to students of the male sex'' and prohibits government entities and athletic associations from hearing complaints or opening investigations into schools for establishing separate teams, the City and State reports.
''This bill creates an environment that can be fulfilling for everybody,'' Geim told Newsmax. ''Biology matters. Trans females can still play on coed teams competitively, they can play on male teams of their biology competitively and they can also create their own category.
''The whole reason we had Title IX was because biology matters and [President Joe] Biden's executive order is taking a lot of those hard-earned advances that women have made over the years and, in my opinion, destroying that because you could see how one trans female at UPenn decimated an entire swimming league and women's swimming for decades.
''Those women practiced and deserve to have their podium time. I don't think it's hateful at all. We just want athletics to be fair.''
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Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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