The Caster clause — an unfair chemical hobble

For all that Caster Semenya is supposed to have an unfair advantage, the fact is that her rivals have been closing the gap on her since she first exploded onto the world stage nine years ago. When she won the 800m gold at the 2009 World Championships, her gap on second-placed Janeth Jepkosgei of Kenya was 2.07%. That may be commanding, but it’s not unheard of — Edwin Moses’s winning gap in the 400m hurdles at the 1976 Olympics was 2.18%. But the International Association of Athletics Federations, the world controlling body, wants to eliminate the gap between Semenya and her competitors entirely, ruling that DSD athletes — those with differences of sexual development — competing in events from the 400m to the 1500m are at an advantage and therefore should take medication to lower naturally occurring levels of testosterone. These events basically cover those Semenya has competed in internationally, and when one considers that there is no scientific evidence that DSD athletes have an advantage in the 1500m, it’s hard not to arrive at the conclusion that there is a witch-hunt against Semenya.

The last athlete targeted in such a manner was world heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali, when he was stripped of his title for refusing to serve in the US military, which was at war in Vietnam.

He had already upset the boxing authorities with his political comments and conversion to Islam, but dodging the draft gave them the ammunition they felt they needed. And so the IAAF is trying to end Semenya’s reign from its boardroom.

Ironically, non-DSD athletes have already been closing the gap on Semenya in the previous two seasons.

At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Semenya’s advantage over fourth-placed Melissa Bishop of Canada was 1.48%, and at the 2017 World Championships in London she was 1.28% better than US bronze medallist Ajee Wilson. And that’s not because Semenya is getting slower; her winning times at these two events were both national records. It’s that her competitors are getting faster.

So can someone please explain what exactly Semenya’s advantage is?