Semenya ‘an inspiration to many around the world’
The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) is to argue that Olympic gold medalist Caster Semenya should be classified as a 'biological male' and will be forced to take testosterone suppressants if she wants to compete in women races, reports said on Wednesday.
The Court of Arbitration (CAS) is set to deliver its ruling whether any athlete with differences in sexual development (DSD) must have their testosterone reduced to female levels before they compete in international races.
The IAAF, in a statement, denied claims about classifying Semenya as a biological male.
"The IAAF is not classifying any DSD athlete as male. To the contrary, we accept their legal sex without question and permit them to compete in the female category. However, if a DSD athlete has male levels of testosterone, they get the same increases in bone and muscle size and strength and increases in hemoglobin that a male gets when they go through puberty, which is what gives men such a performance advantage over women. Therefore, to preserve fair competition in the female category, it is necessary to require DSD athletes to reduce their testosterone down to female levels before they compete at an international level."
Semenya is challenging the proposed rule by the athletics body to restrict the levels of testosterone in female athletes.
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In a statement, her lawyers said the arbitration proceedings before the CAS are confidential and Semenya is not permitted to discuss the case publicly.
"There are different regulations for DSD athletes and transgender athletes. Semenya respects the rights and interests of transgender athletes around the world. Her case, however, is about the rights of women such as Semenya who are born as women, reared and socialized as women, who have been legally recognized as women for their entire lives, who have always competed in athletics as women, and who should be permitted to compete in the female category without discrimination.
"Ms. Semenya is unquestionably a woman. She is a heroine and an inspiration to many around the world. She looks forward to responding to the IAAF at the upcoming CAS hearing".
The Department of Sports and Recreation will on Friday outline their plans to support the country’s world champion.
The department's Vuyo Mhaga says they have instituted a high-level panel that is in the form of medical and legal experts to challenge the case.
"We will be rallying South Africans really to deal with the matter, so we are quite confident that jointly South Africans and the international community will bring IAAF to its sanity.”