Latest news with #Semenya
IOL News
2 days ago
- Sport
- IOL News
Caster Semenya highlights South Africa's medal potential at World Athletics Championships
Caster Semenya, now focusing on coaching, has talked up SA's medal chances in Tokyo later this year. Photo: AFP Image: AFP Caster Semenya is confident in SA's medal prospects at the World Athletics Championship in Tokyo in September, but called for more backing for South African athletes. TeamSA, especially the sprinters, are continuing to light up international meets. Sprinter Akani Simbine is unbeaten in the 100m so far this year, while youngster Bayanda Walaza is staking his claim as the heir apparent. Zakithi Nene boasts the fastest time over the men's 400m so far in 2025. 'I think if you can continue being consistent and working hard we'll do great,' Semenya told Independent Media on Sunday at the Comrades. 'Simbine is doing quite well; he has been consistent and unbeaten this year, so I'm happy with where he is. And obviously, the young boy Walaza is coming okay. I wish them the best of luck in terms of being consistent throughout the season and wish them the best of luck in the championship. 'Then in the road running, we have the Glenrose Xabas who are doing well. Adriaan Wildschutt is doing great, so if we continue being great like that I don't see a problem.' The former multiple Olympic and world champion over 800m is also confident of current star Prudence Sekgodiso chances over the distance at the showpiece event. South African middle-distance runner Prudence Sekgodiso showed that she has taken another significant step forward by claiming gold in the indoor champs earlier this year in a SA record of 1:58.40. Photo: AFP Image: AFP Sekgodiso, the world indoor 800m champion and Paris 2024 Olympian, is coached by former South African middle-distance runner Samuel Sepeng. 'They are building up to the world championships. With her form I think anything can happen,' Semenya said. 'The best that she could do is to make sure that she's patient enough and make sure that she eyes being in the final, because once you are in the final anything is possible. 'As for the rest of the track and field family, they're in a good state. We were able to win medals in the world relays.' Semenya insists that they won't succeed without backing. 'It also comes down to the leadership, the management. They need to learn how to invest in these athletes, making sure that athletes are well taken care of,' she said.
Al-Ahram Weekly
10-02-2025
- Sport
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Athletics: Track's proposed eligibility, transgender rules would completely ban Semenya and others - Omni sports
Track and field moved toward adopting rules that would place athletes assigned female at birth but have higher testosterone levels, like Caster Semenya, under the same set of rules as transgender athletes who were born male and transitioned to female. World Athletics, which in 2023 banned transgender athletes who had transitioned male to female and gone through male puberty, announced recommendations Monday that would apply strict transgender rules to people like Semenya, who was born female but has what the organization describes as naturally occurring testosterone levels in the typical male range. Previously, athletes like Semenya with differences in sex development (DSD) had to undergo testosterone-suppression therapy for two years to be eligible. Now they may be ineligible regardless of whether they've done hormone therapy. The new rules would also eliminate exceptions into the female category for any transgender athlete who hasn't gone through male puberty. No such athletes currently compete at the highest elite levels of track. The recommendations propose reinstating a version of chromosome testing that was discontinued in the 1990s, requiring athletes who compete in the female category to submit to a cheek swab or dry blood-spot test for the presence of a gene that indicates whether the athlete has a 'Y' chromosome present in males. In 2023, World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said new DSD regulations could impact up to 13 current high-level runners; that number is believed to be even smaller now. It includes Semenya, a two-time Olympic champion at 800 meters who has taken the argument to the highest court in sports and the European Court of Human Rights. How the new guidelines might impact Semenya's protests is unknown. The ECHR has ruled Semenya was discriminated against by track's rules, but that did not impact a ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sport that upheld those regulations. In a nod to the fact that the rules could knock Semenya and others completely out of elite track, the recommendations proposed 'the adoption of measures to address any reasonable reliance interests DSD athletes may have as a result of new restrictions.' One possibility would be adding a mixed-gender category to some athletics events. World Athletics says its proposed changes reflect the "latest developments in science, sport and law.' Among the new developments it cites is evidence that 'makes clear that an exclusive focus on male puberty is wrong." It cites evidence that children born male have an 'already an athletically significant performance gap before the onset of puberty,' and that 'athletic disadvantages associated with female body structure and physiology contribute to the performance gap.' The governing body has opened a 'consultation period' on the recommended rule changes through March 5. The next council meeting, at which the rules could be adopted, is set for the end of March, likely after the new president of the International Olympic Committee — a spot for which Coe is running — is selected. Coe, the Olympic champion middle-distance runner, has been vocal about 'protecting the female category" in track and field. More recently, he has said the IOC needs to take a leadership role in the transgender debate instead of letting each individual sport decide their own regulations. 'Preserving the integrity of competition in the Female Category is a fundamental principle of the sport of Athletics and we look forward to this collaborative consultation process with our key stakeholders in this area," Coe said in a statement accompanying the announcement of the proposed changes. The new guidelines issued by Coe's current organization, which are geared toward elite and not grassroots sports, come out only days after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order barring transgender athletes from competing in girls sports in the U.S. and pressured the Olympics to do the same. (For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.) Short link:
CBC
10-02-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Track's proposed eligibility, transgender rules would completely ban Semenya and others
Track and field moved toward adopting rules that would place athletes assigned female at birth but have higher testosterone levels, like Caster Semenya, under the same set of rules as transgender athletes who were born male and transitioned to female. World Athletics, which in 2023 banned transgender athletes who had transitioned male to female and gone through male puberty, announced recommendations Monday that would apply strict transgender rules to people like Semenya, who was born female but has what the organization describes as naturally occurring testosterone levels in the typical male range. Previously, athletes like Semenya with differences in sex development (DSD) had to undergo testosterone-suppression therapy for two years to be eligible for races between 400 meters and one mile. Now they may be ineligible for any events if they've undergone what World Athletics describes as a male-like puberty that gives them unfair advantages. In a nod to the fact that the rules could knock Semenya and others completely out of elite track, the recommendations proposed "the adoption of measures to address any reasonable reliance interests DSD athletes may have as a result of new restrictions." World Athletics opens 'consultation period' World Athletics said it was reworking its guidelines "to reflect latest developments in science, sport and law." It has opened a "consultation period" on the recommended rule changes through March 5. The next council meeting, at which the rules could be adopted, is set for the end of March, likely after the new president of the International Olympic Committee — a spot for which Coe is running — is selected. Coe, the Olympic champion middle-distance runner, has been vocal about "protecting the female category" in track and field. More recently, he has said the IOC needs to take a leadership role in the transgender debate instead of letting each individual sport decide their own regulations. The new guidelines issued by Coe's current organization, which are geared toward elite and not grassroots sports, come out only days after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order barring transgender athletes from competing in girls sports in the U.S. and pressured the Olympics to do the same. The track recommendations would also eliminate exceptions for transgender athletes even if they transitioned to female before puberty — a practice thought to be exceptionally rare. The new rules also would require athletes who compete in the female category to submit a cheek swab to test for the presence of a gene that indicates whether the athlete has a "Y" chromosome present in males. How the new guidelines might impact Semenya's protest of the testosterone rules at the European Court of Human Rights is unknown. The court has ruled Semenya was discriminated against by track's rules, but that did not impact a ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sport that upheld those regulations.
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Track's proposed eligibility, transgender rules would completely ban Semenya and others
Track and field moved toward adopting rules that would place athletes assigned female at birth but have higher testosterone levels, like Caster Semenya, under the same set of rules as transgender athletes who were born male and transitioned to female. World Athletics, which in 2023 banned transgender athletes who had transitioned male to female and gone through male puberty, announced recommendations Monday that would apply strict transgender rules to people like Semenya, who was born female but has what the organization describes as naturally occurring testosterone levels in the typical male range. Previously, athletes like Semenya with differences in sex development (DSD) had to undergo testosterone-suppression therapy for two years to be eligible for races between 400 meters and one mile. Now they may be ineligible for any events if they've undergone what World Athletics describes as a male-like puberty that gives them unfair advantages. In 2023, World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said DSD regulations could impact up to 13 current high-level runners. That included Semenya, a two-time Olympic champion at 800 meters who briefly moved to longer distances after the rules were changed but would now not be eligible for those races either. In a nod to the fact that the rules could knock Semenya and others completely out of elite track, the recommendations proposed 'the adoption of measures to address any reasonable reliance interests DSD athletes may have as a result of new restrictions.' World Athletics said it was reworking its guidelines 'to reflect latest developments in science, sport and law.' It has opened a 'consultation period' on the recommended rule changes through March 5. The next council meeting, at which the rules could be adopted, is set for the end of March, likely after the new president of the International Olympic Committee — a spot for which Coe is running — is selected. Coe, the Olympic champion middle-distance runner, has been vocal about 'protecting the female category" in track and field. More recently, he has said the IOC needs to take a leadership role in the transgender debate instead of letting each individual sport decide their own regulations. The new guidelines issued by Coe's current organization, which are geared toward elite and not grassroots sports, come out only days after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order barring transgender athletes from competing in girls sports in the U.S. and pressured the Olympics to do the same. The track recommendations would also eliminate exceptions for transgender athletes even if they transitioned to female before puberty — a practice thought to be exceptionally rare. The new rules also would require athletes who compete in the female category to submit a cheek swab to test for the presence of a gene that indicates whether the athlete has a 'Y' chromosome present in males. How the new guidelines might impact Semenya's protest of the testosterone rules at the European Court of Human Rights is unknown. The court has ruled Semenya was discriminated against by track's rules, but that did not impact a ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sport that upheld those regulations. ___ AP Sports: Eddie Pells, The Associated Press
The Independent
10-02-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Track's proposed eligibility, transgender rules would completely ban Semenya and others
Track and field moved toward adopting rules that would place athletes assigned female at birth but have higher testosterone levels, like Caster Semenya, under the same set of rules as transgender athletes who were born male and transitioned to female. World Athletics, which in 2023 banned transgender athletes who had transitioned male to female and gone through male puberty, announced recommendations Monday that would apply strict transgender rules to people like Semenya, who was born female but has what the organization describes as naturally occurring testosterone levels in the typical male range. Previously, athletes like Semenya with differences in sex development (DSD) had to undergo testosterone-suppression therapy for two years to be eligible for races between 400 meters and one mile. Now they may be ineligible for any events if they've undergone what World Athletics describes as a male-like puberty that gives them unfair advantages. In 2023, World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said DSD regulations could impact up to 13 current high-level runners. That included Semenya, a two-time Olympic champion at 800 meters who briefly moved to longer distances after the rules were changed but would now not be eligible for those races either. In a nod to the fact that the rules could knock Semenya and others completely out of elite track, the recommendations proposed 'the adoption of measures to address any reasonable reliance interests DSD athletes may have as a result of new restrictions.' World Athletics said it was reworking its guidelines 'to reflect latest developments in science, sport and law.' It has opened a 'consultation period' on the recommended rule changes through March 5. The next council meeting, at which the rules could be adopted, is set for the end of March, likely after the new president of the International Olympic Committee — a spot for which Coe is running — is selected. Coe, the Olympic champion middle-distance runner, has been vocal about 'protecting the female category" in track and field. More recently, he has said the IOC needs to take a leadership role in the transgender debate instead of letting each individual sport decide their own regulations. The new guidelines issued by Coe's current organization, which are geared toward elite and not grassroots sports, come out only days after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order barring transgender athletes from competing in girls sports in the U.S. and pressured the Olympics to do the same. The track recommendations would also eliminate exceptions for transgender athletes even if they transitioned to female before puberty — a practice thought to be exceptionally rare. The new rules also would require athletes who compete in the female category to submit a cheek swab to test for the presence of a gene that indicates whether the athlete has a 'Y' chromosome present in males. How the new guidelines might impact Semenya's protest of the testosterone rules at the European Court of Human Rights is unknown. The court has ruled Semenya was discriminated against by track's rules, but that did not impact a ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sport that upheld those regulations. ___
