Semenya was calm while running the 800m, barely breaking out into a sweat.
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Numerous 800-meter runners did not want to discuss Semenya following Wednesday’s first-round races. Her competitors had plenty to say.
A landmark ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport a year ago allows Semenya, 25, to run without suppressants, and this summer she stormed to victory in every race, including setting a personal best of 1min 53.33sec in Monaco last month. The court said that testosterone level alone is not sufficient cause for preventing women from competing against women.
“It’s not just Caster’s rights but all the women with elevated testosterone that need to be balanced with those that don’t”. But that is now on hold, leaving some competitors feeling that hyperandrogenic women are nearly unbeatable in the 800.
But if she does it, Caster Semenya’s victory probably won’t be met with the same praise, glory and cascade of memes as Usain Bolt’s third consecutive gold for the 100 metres.
While Savinova can’t run in Rio, Semenya threatens to break the 800m world record which has stood for 33 YEARS. It’s just that psychological aspect which can hamper her.
For all that the SA Olympic Committee (Sascoc) had not planned to protect Caster Semenya, they ensured she was whipped past the media after her 800m heat yesterday.
The results were supposed to be confidential, but reports leaked out that she had testosterone levels three times as high as most women. Semenya has always complied with the rules, has never been accused of any personal wrong-doing. I think it’s an very bad situation and it’s a hard decision to make. A way has to be found.
“Again this is all highly speculative, but if she is intersex, if she has stopped taking her testosterone suppressing medication, she has a very large advantage over the other women in the race”. She totally kept her cool even at the back and worked her way through the field. She trains. She suffers.
Head down, braids swaying slightly, she kept moving through the twisting laneway, dozens of eyes trained on her the whole way, like she was the star exhibit at a fair. There’s a lot of discussion around her. I really don’t know enough about it to offer a proper and educated opinion. They say the furore is more because she doesn’t fit the stereotype of what a female athlete should look like.
The IAAF now has two years to make its argument why the rule should be reinstated. She was suspended for 11 months.
Semenya’s dilemma is, the better she runs, the louder the consternation gets.
Don’t intersex athletes have to lower their testosterone levels at the Olympics? . Instead, she commented on her race and Olympic goals in an audio file released by her team.
“I am not focused on any world records, I am focused on enjoying my championship and it’s going to be a tough 800. The medals (are) gold medal, silver or bronze, so those are targets, so we are not going to worry about times at the moment”, she said. “I was just trying to hang on, trying to feel my body first so I could feel comfor table”. “I tried to get in the top two the last 200 so I can win and then I can be safe for the semifinals”.
Some athletes said racing against Semenya has forced them to improve.
How fast can she go?
Did you know there is an intersex/hermaphrodite athlete competing in the Rio 2016 Games?
“I am not focused on any world records”, she said. She’s just trying to be out there training and compete just like the rest of us. “There definitely isn’t a clear one”.
Others will see nothing but trouble, the almost-certain gold medalist competing with an unfair advantage. The Court for Arbitration in Sport (CAS) then ruled that the IAAF had failed to prove the scale of the advantage and whether it would lead to an uneven playing field.
“We’ll see how the regulations will change”, said Fedronic.
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She may also be bustled out of Rio de Janeiro as soon as her race is completed.
