Judge Dismisses NCAA Transgender Eligibility Lawsuit Brought by Riley Gaines
A lawsuit targeting the National Collegiate Athletic Association over its old rules on transgender athletes competing in women's college sports has been thrown out by a federal judge.
The case was brought in 2024 by former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines along with more than a dozen athletes who are either currently competing or have finished their college careers. Their complaint followed the appearance of transgender University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas at the 2022 national championships, which were hosted by Georgia Tech.
The athletes filed their suit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, claiming the association's policies had infringed their rights under Title IX. Other litigation could be affected by the outcome, among them a comparable case brought by three University of Pennsylvania swimmers.
Title IX, as described by the Education Department, is the federal statute that "prohibits sex-based discrimination in education programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance." Judge Tiffany R. Johnson concluded in her ruling that Title IX protections do not extend to the NCAA, since the body is not a recipient of federal funding.
The 2022 NCAA Division I Women's Swimming and Diving Championships featured prominently in the plaintiffs' arguments. Thomas finished first in the 500-yard freestyle at that event and made use of the women's locker rooms. Politico reported that through 2025, the NCAA "allowed transgender women to compete on sports teams and use facilities that align with their gender identity."
In February of that year, the association revised its participation rules, restricting entry to women's events to athletes who were assigned female at birth, according to The Associated Press. President Trump had signed an executive order barring transgender athletes from girls' and women's sports the previous day.
After the decision came down, Gaines said on social media that she plans to challenge it on appeal, adding that the "goal from the beginning was to get this case before the Supreme Court."
"This momentary setback will not deter me or other women athletes in the least," she said in a statement obtained by Politico. "We are on the side of truth. I am confident Americans will rally to our side to fight the NCAA."
NCAA spokesperson Meghan Wright told the outlet following the ruling that the organization "is proud to continually invest in and expand women's sports and the NCAA is in full compliance with the Trump administration's executive order on women's sports."
According to The Daily Pennsylvanian, the Georgia court's decision "has significant ramifications for a similar lawsuit" that three former UPenn swimmers filed in February 2025 against Penn, Harvard University, the Ivy League and the NCAA.
Those plaintiffs contended that Thomas's appearance at the 2022 women's Ivy League championship, hosted by Harvard, had deprived them of "equal opportunities as women to compete and win while being denied the opportunity to protect their privacy in separate and equal locker rooms," the outlet reported.
The Daily Pennsylvanian had previously reported that Harvard and the Ivy League were removed from that case by a federal court in July 2025. Massachusetts federal district Judge William Young also issued a stay on proceedings against the defendants who remained, to be lifted once Gaines' lawsuit reached a conclusion.
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