Iszac Henig, a transgender male swimmer at Yale University, has drawn notice after victories this weekend in multiple races in which he defeated all competitors, including transgender University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas.
Henig, a California native, stunned parents at the meet as the Yale swimmer easily beat out his opponents in the women’s 100-yard freestyle, with a time of 49.57 seconds.
Thomas, who finished fifth, finished with a time of 52.84 seconds.
The Yale swimmer won the 50-yard free in 22.76, then coming out of the break with a 49.57 to seal the deal in the 100 free. Henig won the 50 free by 0.96 seconds, and the 100 by 1.60 seconds, both huge margins for those events.
Later, in the women’s 400-yard freestyle relay, Henig again crushed Thomas and his other competitors, finishing in 50.45 seconds, giving Yale the number one spot in the competition on the strength of his leg of the race. Thomas meanwhile finished her leg of the race in 51.94 seconds.
Iszac Henig still competes on the Ivy League school’s women’s team after coming out to coaches and teammates in April 2021, and told the New York Times in July that he was not taking hormones because he still wanted to compete
In the women’s 400-yard freestyle relay, Iszac Henig again crushed Thomas and his other competitors, completing his leg in 50.45 seconds, giving Yale the number one spot in the competition on the strength of his leg of the race
Trangender University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas was crushed in the 100-meter freestyle, finishing fifth – after being beaten by another transgender swimmer, Iszac Henig (left) who is transitioning from female to male. On Saturday, Henig also finished first in the earlier 50-yard freestyle, smashing records. After the race, the 20-year-old, who has had his breasts removed, pulled down the top of his swimsuit
Earlier, at the meet where UPenn competed against Dartmouth and Yale, Thomas won the first of four races by just two seconds – one month after she shattered two women’s records with a 38-second margin against her closest competitor. She also narrowly won the 500-yard freestyle by just a second, with bystanders telling DailyMail.com that she seemed to be ‘coasting’ and ‘barely trying’
Henig, who is transitioning from female to male, also finished first in the earlier 50-yard freestyle, smashing records. After the race, the 20-year-old, who has had his breasts removed, pulled down the top of his swimsuit. Parents at the swim meet said they were stunned as Henig won the women’s race
Lia Thomas, pictured in lane two (far right), came fifth in the 100 yard freestyle, while Iszac Henig, pictured in lane four (center), won the race
Stunned parents gasped as Yale swimmer, Iszac Henig, easily beat out his opponents in the women’s 100-meter freestyle, with a time of 49.57 seconds. Thomas, who finished fifth, finished with a time of 52.84 seconds.
Henig came just short of his collegiate bests, having previously done the 50 in 22.59 and the 100 in 48.90.
With the 2020-21 season canceled due to the pandemic, Henig is looking to improve on having finished third in the 100-yard freestyle at the Ivy League Championships in 2019-20 and topping a fifth-place finish in the conference in the 50-freestyle.
After the race, the 20-year-old, who has had his breasts removed, pulled down the top of his swimsuit.
Henig still competes on the Ivy League school’s women’s team after coming out to coaches and teammates in April 2021, and told the New York Times in July that he was not taking hormones because he still wanted to compete.
‘As a student athlete, coming out as a trans guy put me in a weird position. I could start hormones to align more with myself, or wait, transition socially, and keep competing on a women’s swim team. I decided on the latter,’ he wrote in an opinion piece.
‘I value my contributions to the team and recognize that my boyhood doesn’t hinge on whether there’s more or less testosterone running through my veins. At least, that’s what I’ll try to remember when I put on the women’s swimsuit for the competition and am reminded of a self I no longer feel attached to.’
Facebook profile photo of transgender Yale swimmer Iszac Henig, who told the New York Times in July that he was not taking hormones because he still wanted to compete
Thomas stands with her teammates after competing in the 400-yard freestyle relay after being crushed by Henig
In a less dominent display than in Ohio, Thomas swam slightly behind her closest competitor for most of the race, before pulling ahead at the end in the final heat. In the first heat, she finished about five second ahead of her closest competitor
On Saturday, Thomas was cheered to victory as won her first race of four – the 200m freestyle, finishing 1.48.73, with her closest competitor just two seconds behind her. She is pictured before the race
In a less dominent display than in Ohio, Thomas swam slightly behind her closest competitor for most of the race in the 200-yard freestyle, before pulling ahead at the end in the final heat. In the first heat, she finished about five second ahead of her closest competitor
Parents at the swim meet said they were stunned as Henig won the women’s race.
‘I wasn’t prepared for that. Everything is messed up. I can’t wrap my head around this. The NCAA needs to do something about this. They need to put science into the decision and discussion,’ a UPenn parent, who wanted to remain anonymous, told DailyMail.com.
Another parent said: ‘A man just crushed the women’s team.’
Earlier on Saturday, Thomas won the first of four races by just two seconds – one month after she shattered two women’s records with a 38-second margin against her closest competitor.
UPenn’s swim meet on Saturday against Dartmouth and Yale is the Penn team’s first since October when Lia Thomas blew away the competition and shattered two national women’s records last month at the Zippy International in Akron, Ohio.
Such was her dominance in the 1,650-yard freestyle that second placed swimmer Anna Kalandadze, a UPenn teammate, finished 38 seconds behind her.
On Saturday, she was cheered to victory as won her first race of four – the 200-yard freestyle, finishing 1.48.73, with her closest competitor just two seconds behind her.
In a less dominent display than in Ohio, Thomas swam slightly behind her closest competitor for most of the race, before pulling ahead at the end in the final heat. In the first heat, she finished about five second ahead of her closest competitor.
Transgender University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas won the two of four races before being crushed in two others – months after smashing women’s records. Thomas came out as transgender in 2019 and under NCAA rules was eligible to switch from the men’s team to the women’s after taking a year of testosterone suppressants