The University of Pennsylvania has agreed to ban transgender athletes from its women’s sports teams, settling a federal civil rights case stemming from the furore around swimmer Lia Thomas, the US government said on Tuesday.
The US Department of Education said in a statement that UPenn had entered into a resolution agreement vowing to comply with Title IX, the federal law which prohibits sex-based discrimination in any educational program.
It follows an investigation by the department’s Office for Civil Rights, which found the university had violated Title IX by allowing transgender swimmer Thomas to compete in women’s competitions in 2021-2022.
US President Donald Trump, who campaigned on the issue of trans athletes, has worked to prohibit them from competing in girls’ and women’s sports since returning to office.