When it comes to international competition, FINA is the authority that the International Olympic Committee depends on to administer water sports.  Founded in 1908, the organization's biggest controversy in the past was its 2021 ban on Soul Caps, a headgear designed for natural black hair.  Now, though, FINA has taken on a much bigger issue than what kind of cap is suitable for competitive swimming.  The federation has courageously voted to ban Will Thomas, AKA Lia Thomas, from women's sports.

FINA does not mention Will by either his true name or his alias.  The organization has simply voted to ban male swimmers from women's sports unless they started the process to look like a woman before the age of twelve.  Such a ruling effectively cuts off Will Thomas from creating any more records at the expense of real female athletes.

This is welcome news for every girl who dreams of one day being a champion athlete.  The World Swimming Coaches Association (WSCA) had already paved the way for FINA's decision by announcing on May 13, 2022 that men calling themselves women should not compete against real women.

The WSCA promoted the idea of a separate category for trans athletes so that everyone can engage in the sport he loves.  FINA also supports creating a division for trans athletes.  The International Olympic Committee has recommended that the focus should change from individual testosterone levels to evidence that shows an advantage in performance, a sensible measure that takes into account what athletes can actually do rather than what their blood tests show.

Image: Will Thomas with an actual woman (edited).  YouTube screen grab.

The Twitterati are already out in force decrying the decision that only women (mostly) should compete against other women.  Grandly named activist groups are slamming FINA's move to protect women, claiming that it is, instead, discrimination against "transwomen."

Clearly, there is still much work to be done in this area.  FINA's decision includes the notion that children are able to become members of the opposite sex before the age of twelve, ignoring the reality that mutilating a child's mind and body in a futile attempt to turn him into the opposite sex is child abuse on a scale almost certain to cause lifelong trauma and mental problems.  This issue must be addressed, lest parents crazed by leftist propaganda try to force their children to transition.

However, as more authorities in the world of elite sports fall in line with the idea that girls are girls and men are men, female athletes can take heart that fair competition is once more supported in their chosen sports.

Pandra Selivanov is the author of Future Slave, a story about a 21st-century black teenager who goes back in time and becomes a slave in the Old South.