This article was updated on 7/18 with a comment from U.S. Masters Swimming.
Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against U.S. Masters Swimming for allowing the participation of biologically male athletes in women’s competitions.
“U.S. Masters Swimming’s insane policy of allowing men to participate in women’s competitions is both deeply unfair to female competitors and unlawful,” said Paxton.
Because the events were advertised as including only female participants, the suit brings several charges against the organization, including “[e]ngaging in false, misleading, or deceptive acts,” “[c]ausing confusion or misunderstanding as to the source of goods or services,” and “[a]dvertising goods or services with intent not to sell them as advertised.”
This lawsuit follows his May investigation into the organization over the results of a national swimming competition held in San Antonio.
In April, Hugo Caldas, who went by the name “Ana,” won first place in the 50-yard breaststroke, 100-yard breaststroke, 50-yard freestyle, 100-yard freestyle, and 100-yard individual medley in the 45-49 age bracket.
The results of his involvement, as well as other men who participated in the tournament, generated significant controversy on social media.
Today, former college swimmer and conservative speaker Riley Gaines expressed her support for Paxton’s lawsuit against U.S. Masters Swimming on X.
U.S. Masters Swimming responded to Texas Scorecard’s request for comment on July 18, expressing surprise at the lawsuit, as the organization had recently implemented an interim eligibility policy. The new policy does not allow “transgender” men to hold records or receive awards in female competitions, though it does allow them to compete with women.
The full statement can be found below:
| The Texas Office of the Attorney General notified U.S. Masters Swimming on May 19 that it was conducting an investigation into policies pertaining to transgender athlete participation in USMS competitions. USMS has been cooperating fully with the investigation and has been working with the Texas Office of the Attorney General to hopefully reach an agreement about the policy.
USMS implemented an interim eligibility policy on July 1 in response to feedback from our members and the Attorney General’s office and in line with our partnership with World Aquatics, which USMS is a member federation of. USMS surprisingly learned yesterday via social media that the Texas Office of the Attorney General filed a lawsuit against USMS and the five LMSCs that operate in the State of Texas. USMS is currently reviewing the allegations. To be clear, under USMS’s policy (which aligns with World Aquatics policy), trans women are not eligible to receive records, Top 10 times, or awards in the women’s category at all USMS-sanctioned events, and trans men are eligible for those competitive recognition programs in the men’s category. Moreover, trans women swimming in the women’s category do not displace other women from participating or receiving recognition in any USMS event. USMS policies referenced have been publicly posted on our website since 2012 and are outlined in our annually published Code of Regulations. More information about USMS’s interim eligibility policy can be found in our FAQs. USMS is a national nonprofit community of adult swimmers focused on health and fitness. It is deeply disappointing to see our organization and individual members publicly targeted in a lawsuit that appears to be more about generating headlines than seeking justice. USMS will continue to cooperate fully with the Texas Office of the Attorney General and to uphold the values that have guided our community for more than 50 years. |
