SA government fully backs Caster after new claims
The government is standing firm behind Caster Semenya after a news report claimed that International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) lawyers will argue that the world and Olympic 800m champion should be classified as female but also as a “biological male” at a landmark case to be heard next week.
The IAAF rejected the “biological male” claims but said it still wanted the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to rule whether any athlete with differences in sexual development (DSD) must have their testosterone reduced.
Semenya is challenging the proposed rule by the IAAF that seeks to restrict the levels of testosterone in female athletes and the sports minister’s spokesperson, Vuyo Mhaga, said on Thursday that it was fully behind her.
“We have noted the news that has broken out over the past 24 hours but we want to reiterate our support for Caster.
“The minister [Tokozile Xasa] will be releasing a programme where there is going to be a campaign of support for her.”
The IAAF insisted that the “biological male” claims published in the online edition of the Times were not true.
“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 testes and male levels of testosterone‚ they get the same increases in bone and muscle size and strength and increases in haemoglobin that a male gets when they go through puberty‚ which is what gives men such a performance advantage.
“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 international level.”
Semenya’s lawyers said on Thursday that she would fight her battle with the IAAF in court and not in the media.
The firm Norton Rose Fullbright said the arbitration proceedings were confidential and that Semenya was not permitted to discuss the case publicly.