Caster challenge in court’s hands

THE Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) said yesterday it had opened a probe into Caster Semenya’s challenge of controversial new IAAF rules on testosterone occurring in female athletes.

Cas said it had “registered a request for arbitration” filed by the South African two-time Olympic gold medallist against the “International Association of Athletics Federations’ (IAAF) ‘Eligibility Regulations for Female Classification [Athletes with Differences of Sex Development]’ that are due to come into effect on 1 November 2018”.

Semenya, Cas said, sought a “ruling from Cas to declare such regulations unlawful and to prevent them from being brought into force. An arbitration procedure has been opened”.

The IAAF announced its new rules targeting women who naturally produce unusually high levels of testosterone in April, arguing that hyperandrogynous competitors enjoy an unfair advantage.

Athletes classified as “hyper-androgynous”, like Semenya, will have to chemically lower their testosterone levels to five nanomoles per litre of blood to be eligible to run any international race of 400 metres up to the kilometre.

Semenya, who has undergone several sex tests since her first title in 2009, has called the rules discriminatory and violate the IAAF’s constitution and the Olympic Charter.

The IAAF said it stood “ready to defend the new regulations”. —