Despite Switzerland’s highest court rejecting an IAAF request for eligibility regulations to be reimposed on Olympic champion and intersex athlete Caster Semanya, she has been denied from participating in the Diamond League 800m event in Rabat, Morocco. I find this interesting because it’s happening just after she won the 2000m race in Paris.
In a statement on Thursday, Semenya’s lawyers said she was notified on Tuesday that the President of the Moroccan Athletics Federation had denied her entry in the 800m race.
“Caster is currently seeking clarity on the specific reasons for that decision, and she urges the IAAF to ensure its member federations comply with the law and the Supreme Court’s orders of May 31 and June 12,” the statement said.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport last month rejected Semenya’s challenge against the new regulations. However, she appealed to the Swiss federal supreme court which temporarily suspended the IAAF rules until a further hearing can take place.
The ruling meant female athletes with naturally high testosterone levels such as Semenya would need to take suppressants in order to compete in the elite middle distance. Semenya, twice Olympic 800 metres champion, had toyed with the idea of boycotting the event in solidarity with other athletes affected by the regulations, but said she had decided that running was the best form of protest.
When Bernard Dayo isn’t writing about pop culture, he’s watching horror movies and reading comics and trying to pretend his addiction to Netflix isn’t a serious condition.
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