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The former swimmer of the University of Pennsylvania, Monika Burzynska, said that she had been assigned to the locker next to Lia Thomas when the transgender athlete had joined the female swimming team in 2021. Burzynska previously knew the athlete as Will Thomas, member of the male swimming team in Upenn.
“He was not very social,” Burzynska told PK Press Club Digital, adding that she had never had that short conversations passing with Thomas.
She thought that Thomas had already graduated when her team had been realized that the athlete in transition was to join the women’s team from the 2021-222 season.
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The swimmer of the University of Pennsylvania, Lia Thomas, poses with the teammates Hannah Kannan, Camryn Carter and Margot Kaczorowski after winning the 400 free yard relay during the Ivy League swimming and diving championships on February 19, 2022, in Cambridge, Massachusets. (Images Kathryn Riley / Getty)
When this season has finally started and Thomas has become a must in the locker room for women, Burzynska has often retired to the corner of the room to change. Other times, Burzynska has timed exactly when she changed to coincide with when Thomas took a shower. Finally, Burzynska chose to change only in the stalls or in the family locker through the corridor.
“Around Lia, I was not going to risk anything,” said Burzynska, concerning the possibility that the Trans athlete was undressed.
Burzynska has never talked about his experience of being in a team with Thomas so far, in the midst of recent news that Upenn has agreed to apologize to all swimmers, to cancel the files of the Thomas program and to adopt a new policy that applies strict biological definitions for men and women.
She said that the news had given her “a deep feeling of peace and validation”.
“Not only for me, but for all the girls of the team, for all the girls in the swimming world and in the world of sport. And I think that this decision has brought back – at least for me – a feeling of equity that had been lost,” said Burzynska. “Women ‘files belong to women and that the protection of the integrity of female sports is still important.”
However, the memories of what Burzynska and others had to endure the persisters.
Burzynska identifies himself as a person with conservative values, but says they grew up feeling the “compassion” for transgender people. Her views have changed when she was placed next to Thomas in the locker room.
“I thought it should be terrible to feel that you are trapped in the bad body. Be so disconnected from who you really are,” said Burzynska. “You have these problems which are by far and you never really think that they will touch you personally until you are in a team with Lia Thomas and your locker is directly next to this organic man. And you would never have believed that you would face this problem directly.
“And then when it happens, your opinions change where you always feel sorry for this person because they are clearly so deeply lost. But then, it turns more,” OK, it’s not just “”, added Burzynska.
As an originally from Colonia, New Jersey, Burzynska explained that she had grown in a liberal environment with a prominent pro-LGBTQ feeling. These values followed her when she went to Upenn in the deep blue city of Philadelphia.
“We have a very, very, what should I call it, like a deep presence LGBTQ on the campus where the buildings of the campus or the dormitories, rather than to pilot the American flag, the trans flag, the LGBTQ flag [were flown]. Whenever I visit Penn, I see that it is like this huge skyscraper dormitory, and they have the largest rainbow flag that you can imagine, “said Burzynska.
“So, I suppose, in a sense, you might say that it encourages him if a person is very confused about his identity, and then this group seems so accepting, so loving, saying that you could be everything you want to be … Who could, yes, encourage people to turn in this way.”
Burzynska, and the other swimmers of the team at the time, would have been forced to silence and submission by administrators of Upenn.
A trial of three other former teammates of Thomas, Grace, Estabrook, Margot Kaczorowski and Ellen Holmquist, allegedly alleged that university officials have made them pressure so as not to speak of their reflections on Thomas.
“The administrators of Upenn continued to tell women that if women spoke publicly about their concerns about Thomas’ participation in the female team, the reputation of those who complain of Thomas have risen by transphobia for the rest of their lives and they could probably never find a job,” said the trial.
Upenn agrees to follow Trump’s mandate on the protection of female sports after the investigation of Lia Thomas
The former female swimmer of Upenn Monika Burzynska (Thanks to Monika Burzynska)
Burzynska, having grown up in a liberal city in New Jersey, was already used to the consequences of sharing conservative values in a liberal setting.
Burzynska remembers, from a young age, often criticized for having “conservative or republican values”.
“I had experienced this forever. And even Upenn, I think it is all universities at this stage, but Upenn is very, very left. And so I was a little ready to embrace this, that my opinions would not be welcomed because, yes, I was conservative most of my life. My beliefs are based on faith.”
Burzynska remembers a futile conversation she had with her head coach Mike Schnur when she confronted her with concerns to be in a team with Thomas.
“We had this long meeting, I do not know, almost two hours. And he said:” Listen, Monika, I understand all your concerns. They are all valid. I do not think that one of them dissuades you from continuing in your senior year and having a successful senior year. I think the only thing that was distected, is that Lia changes in your locker room and you could not do anything. ” Burzyska.
“I told him during this meeting:” What are you talking about? Like, how is it right? “And his answer was:” It’s not fair, but if you have problems, come to me … don’t talk to everyone.
Burzynska said that she had never taken Schnur on this offer, believing that he would do nothing anyway.
However, she alleges that she saw her teammates to have these futile conversations with Schnur, from a distance.
Then came the administrators who would have put pressure on the female swimmers who opposed Thomas to go to the pro-LGBTQ advice. Burzynska said she had called the advice session “brainwashing meetings”.
She never attended the sessions.
Burzynska has since left the situation and adopted his life and his career beyond.
However, she admits that certain parts of the situation instilled in her “trauma” in her, and she is grateful that the administration of President Donald Trump has made the priority to instill the consequences in Upenn.
“Those [women’s] Penn rights have been clearly compromised, so it is surprising that they examined it and Trump took it if seriously, “said Burzynska.
PK Press Club Digital contacted UPENN for a response to Burzynska’s statements.
