Semenya-IAAF spat means she’ll miss out

As much as both athletes have earned their nominations – a significant achievement in itself – South African track and field fans are likely to have their bubbles burst if they expect Caster Semenya or Luvo Manyonga to step on stage at this year’s IAAF Awards.

To be clear, Semenya and Manyonga have delivered spectacular performances this season, and to be nominated among the top 10 male and female athletes of the year is worthy recognition for standing out among the global elite.

But one slip by Manyonga on the international stage is likely to cost him dearly, and with Semenya’s hopes resting largely in the hands of people who don’t even want her in the sport, she’ll almost certainly have to be satisfied with the adulation she receives at home as one of the favourites for the SA Sports Awards next month.

Though Manyonga settled for the silver medal behind Cuban prodigy Juan Miguel Echevarria at the World Indoor Championships, he did set an African indoor long jump record (8.44m), and while Echevarria went on to set the 2018 outdoor world lead (8.68m), Manyonga’s season’s best of 8.58m was just seven centimetres short of his own national mark.

Winning the Commonwealth Games and Diamond League titles was enough to earn him a spot among the nominees, but after settling for second place behind compatriot Ruswahl Samaai at the African Championships and missing out on a place at the Continental Cup, he has little more than an outside chance of making the five-man shortlist for the award.

And even if he makes the cut as a finalist, Manyonga has no realistic chance of scooping the prestigious accolade, with three of the nominees having broken world records this season.

Semenya, on the other hand, should be a firm favourite for the shortlist among female nominees, and has done enough to give herself a chance based purely on performances, but sideline battles off the track are likely to smother her prospects of taking home the accolade.

Unbeaten over the 800m dis- tance for the third year in a row, Semenya was virtually unstoppable this season.

She won double gold at the Commonwealth Games (800m/1 500m) and the African Championships (400m/800m), and secured Continental Cup and Diamond League titles in her favoured two-lap event.

The 27-year-old closed out the campaign as the fastest woman in the world this year over 800m (1:54.25) and 1 000m (2:30.70), breaking multiple national records over both distances. She also became the first South African woman to dip under 50 seconds in the 400m sprint (49.62) and four minutes in the 1 500m event (3:59.92).

As is the case among the men’s nominees, multiple women could realistically take home the award, and Semenya’s achievements this year suggest she has as good a chance as anyone.

But two massive hurdles in the voting process are likely to ultimately eliminate her.

While 25% of the first round of votes will be decided by the public, the majority of the power belongs to the IAAF council and its members.

And once the finalists are unveiled, the winners will be determined by the global body.

With Semenya preparing to face the IAAF in court in an ongoing gender battle, and the public voting power limited to little more than a thin veil of transparency, the decision really rests with the organisation’s top brass who are highly unlikely to recognise her with their most prestigious accolade.

And it’s a real shame because the title of Female World Athlete of the Year is one she truly deserves.