This week, South Africans are rallying behind athletics star Caster Semenya, as she brings her case before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

You may remember that last year, her future as an athlete was cast into doubt when the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) introduced new “eligibility regulations for female classification”.

Essentially, what these regulations did was restrict the testosterone levels for female athletes who compete in events like the 400m, 800m, and 1 500m, which are conveniently those events in which Caster would possibly compete.

The Mail and Guardian with why the battle this week is so important:

 [Caster] is challenging regulations that would force her to artificially lower her testosterone levels in order to compete in sanctioned competition…

If the rules had to remain in place, athletes who have a “difference of sexual development” (DSD) would be rigorously monitored and forced to lower, and then maintain for six months, their testosterone levels to five nanomoles a litre (nmol/l).

The upcoming CAS hearing has the potential to set major precedents in athletics. With the 2020 Summer Olympics a little over a year away, there are possible ramifications for athletes who find themselves in a similar predicament as Semenya.

As you can imagine, here at home there is a groundswell of support, with the government backing Caster in her appeal. According to Sports Minister Tokozile Xasa, the government has even sent a legal team along to the CAS hearing:

“Through our department of sport and recreation we have established a high-level panel consisting of the Medical and Legal work-streams respectively,” Xasa revealed. “This panel consists of experts in both medical and legal fraternities who constitute the respective work streams.

“Work in all the streams has commenced and the high-level panel have prepared a formidable case based on legal and medical data collected, and the legal team will appear before CAS to present the case in support of the case lodged by both ASA and Ms Caster Mokgadi Semenya.”

Makes a nice change to see the government back our athletes, even if Athletics SA (ASA) continues to consistently shaft our top performers.

Apparently, the SA government will spend a cool R25 million to help with the legal costs, and the case will be heard from today at the CAS headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.

We’re rooting for you, Caster.

[source:mg]