Caster Semenya Calls For Athletes’ Rights To Be Put First As Court Rules In Her Favour

The South African runner Caster Semenya has called for athletes’ authorities to beryllium amended protected aft Europe’s apical quality authorities tribunal ruled that she had not been fixed a adjacent proceedings erstwhile she contested a argumentation that required her to little her testosterone levels successful bid to compete successful women’s sport.

The decision, handed down connected Thursday by nan European tribunal of quality rights, was nan latest twist successful nan two-time Olympic golden medallist’s bonzer ineligible battle.

The middle-distance runner – who won golden successful nan 800m astatine nan 2012 and 2016 Olympics and has ever been legally identified arsenic female – was calved pinch what sporting officials picture arsenic “differences of activity development”, meaning her assemblage people produces higher levels of testosterone than astir women.

The governing assemblage for way and section has agelong maintained that Semenya must return narcotics to trim her testosterone levels successful bid to compete arsenic a woman. The argumentation was upheld by nan Lausanne-based tribunal of arbitration for athletics successful 2019, and past by a Swiss national tribunal successful 2020, starring Semenya to return her long-running conflict against nan regulations to nan European court.

On Thursday Semenya welcomed nan European court’s decision, describing it arsenic “great for me, awesome for athletes” arsenic she said to reporters extracurricular nan court. “We request to respect athletes, we request to put their authorities first,” said nan 34-year-old.

The determination does not alteration the rules that efficaciously ended her profession aft she won 2 Olympics and 3 world titles. The tribunal said it could not uphold an earlier finding by a little enclosure that Semenya had been nan unfortunate of discrimination, deeming nan complaints inadmissible arsenic they did not autumn nether Switzerland’s jurisdiction.

But it handed her a partial triumph successful uncovering that nan lawsuit required a “rigorous judicial review” arsenic location were superior individual authorities astatine consequence and nan Swiss national court’s reappraisal had “fallen short of that requirement”. It ordered Switzerland to salary nan jock €80,000 (£69,000) for her expenses.

The determination paves nan measurement for nan lawsuit to beryllium sent backmost to nan Swiss national tribunal successful Lausanne for reconsideration.

Between 2011 and 2015, Semenya complied pinch a process group retired by way and field’s governing body, taking medicine to little her testosterone levels. She later likened it to being utilized arsenic a “human guinea pig”, saying she had grappled pinch broadside effects specified arsenic changeless sickness, panic attacks and soreness moreover arsenic she continued to triumph titles.

Track authorities person based on that nan limits connected testosterone levels are basal and reasonable to support fairness successful women’s way events. Their critics opportunity location is simply a deficiency of technological investigation to support this view.

Caster Semenya won golden successful nan 800m astatine nan 2012 and 2016 Olympics. Photograph: Martin Rickett/PA

After nan governing assemblage for way and section formalised its argumentation connected testosterone levels successful 2018, Semenya refused to comply, leaving her ineligible to compete. On Thursday, nan governing body, World Athletics, did not respond to nan European court’s decision.

The consequences of Semenya’s ineligible conflict could resound crossed nan sports world arsenic it dovetails pinch nan International Olympic Committee’s consideration of whether to reintroduce immoderate intends of gender testing.

The nexus was emphasised by Semenya past period successful an question and reply pinch a South African newspaper. “It’s a conflict for quality authorities now,” she said. “It’s not astir competing. It’s astir putting athletes’ authorities first. It’s astir nan protection of athletes.”

In 2023, Human Rights Watch described nan rules that Semenya had been taxable to arsenic “degrading and invasive of privacy, connected grounds that are scientifically contested”.

The regulations were incompatible pinch respect for women’s rights, and nan state to unrecorded without cruel, discriminatory and degrading treatment, it added. “International sporting bodies group regulations pinch scant respect for world quality authorities norms, arsenic if they are exempt from quality authorities standards.”

On Thursday, Semenya, who dominated her athletics betwixt 2009 and 2019 contempt nan scrutiny complete her gender, vowed that her conflict would continue. “The conflict will ne'er beryllium over,” she told reporters. “As agelong arsenic we person injustice, we conflict till nan court.”