Semenya set a new national record to win in one minute 55.28 seconds and finish well clear of silver medallist Francine Niyonsaba of Burundi. Niyonsaba earned silver (1:56.49) and Margaret Wambui of Kenya won the battle for bronze (1:56.89).
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Semenya won her country’s second gold in Rio and South Africans reciprocated with a heroic welcome for the athlete when she touched down in Jo’burg.
She fought a long battle to compete at the highest level, and took part in the Olympics after the International Association of Athletics Federations’s regulations on the issue were overturned.
Semenya, the 2009 world champion, won the silver at London 2012, becoming the first SA athlete since 110m hurdler Sid Atkinson in 1928 to upgrade a silver to gold four years later.
Racing in Rio, however, she was lacking key competition in the form of Russia’s Mariya Savinova and Ekaterina Poistogova, first and third in London, who were barred from the 2016 Games following revelations of state-backed doping in Russian athletics.
Along with her performance on the track, Semenya has been a story off it.
“Of course”, said Semenya, when asked if she was indeed happier, “that’s what happens when you get married”.
Cape Town – The government on Sunday congratulated Caster Semenya for breezing through the women’s 800m final and securing an Olympic gold medal.
Following the introduction of those rules, Semenya’s times slipped, with many assuming she was taking medication to keep her testosterone levels within acceptable limits.
In July 2010, Semenya was cleared to compete but she was ordered to take medication to lower her natural testosterone levels. But though the debate around her will continue until the authorities find a solution to whether the testosterone her condition creates must be controlled, her performance was attractive in its athleticism and intelligence.
Caster Semenya stormed to victory in the women’s 800m at the Rio Olympics by more than a second on Saturday night.
But under a legal challenge, the IAAF was forced to drop the testosterone-limiting rules previous year. “I am who I am and I’m proud of myself”. Lynsey Sharp, one of the runners competing against Semenya, said, “Everyone can see it’s two separate races, so there’s nothing I can do”.
“Sport is meant to unite people”.
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“Being an Olympic finalist is a huge step forward but obviously I’m never satisfied”. “You just need to be a great leader”. It is not about looking at how people look, how they speak, how they run, it is not about being muscular. “My mind’s in a much better place this year”.
