Isaac Hennig, a transgender man, joined Yale men’s swimming team after finishing last year as an All-American female swimmer.
Hennig has took hormones eight months in between his transition, but his senior time was “like the end of last season,” he wrote in an op-ed piece for the New York Times on Thursday.
Hennig wrote that he finished 79th among 83 swimmers at a meet in November.
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Yale swimmer Isaac Hennig on the starting block with “Let Trans Kids Play” written on his arm during the 100 freestyle prelims at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships at the Macaulay Aquatic Center on March 19, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia.
(Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
“I wasn’t the slowest person in any of my events, but I wasn’t as successful in sports as I was on the women’s team,” Hennig wrote,
The four guys who finished behind Hennig, according to outkickThere was one swimmer who was born without a left arm and three others who specialized in breaststroke.
Several days earlier, in a tie against Colombia, Hennig finished 10th out of 11 in the 200-yard freestyle and 11th out of 12 in the 100-yard freestyle. His 400-yard freestyle relay finished in last place out of five teams, and his swim time was the slowest of all swimmers in that race.
However, Hennig’s goal is not necessarily to win as a man.
“Instead, I’m trying to connect with my teammates in new ways, to cheer louder, to focus more on the excitement of the game,” Hennig wrote. “Competing and being challenged is the best part. It’s a different kind of fulfillment. And it’s great to feel comfortable in the locker room every day.
Yale Bulldogs swimmer Issac Hennig excels in Ivy League swimming & amp; Diving Championships at Blodgett Pool on February 18, 2022 in Allston, MA.
(Erika Denhoff / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
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“I believe that when trans athletes win, we deserve to celebrate in the same way as cis athletes. We are not betraying our true selves by pursuing us – we have not given up our legitimacy. Elite Class sports are always a natural advantage or a combination of talent and commitment. To work hard. There’s a lot more to a great athlete than hormones or height. I swim faster than some cis men.”
Lia Thomas, who transitioned from male to female, won the women’s NCAA championship last March, further fueling the debate of transgender women in sports. She was the first transgender athlete to win a Division I national title in any sport.
University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas (C) smiles with Yale University swimmer Isaac Hennig (right) after winning the 100 yard freestyle during the 2022 Ivy League Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships at Blodgett Pool on February 19, 2022 in Cambridge, Massachusetts .
(Catherine Riley / Getty Images)
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As a high-schooler, Hennig (then Iszak) competed at the 2016 Olympic Trials and two years later was among the nation’s top 100 female swimmers.