New Hearing Ordered for Female Runner Barred From Competition Because of ‘Too Much’ Testosterone

An Olympic champion runner classified as female from birth will get a new hearing in Swiss courts after having been barred from competition because of naturally high testosterone levels.The European Court of Human Rights ruled Thursday that Caster Semenya did not get a fair hearing in her fight against sex eligibility rules by the organization that sanctions international competitions.The athlete, who won gold in the 800-meter event at the 2012 and 2016 Games, has naturally high testosterone levels and is classified as having “differences in sexual development” but has always been legally identified as a female.A 2018 World Athletics regulation requires her to decrease her natural testosterone level in order to be allowed to take part in international competitions as a female. Under the rules, a female athlete must lower testosterone to a certain level medically or surgically for at least six months to be eligible for competition.World Athletics says its rules maintain fairness because Ms. Semenya has a male-like advantage. She sued to restore her eligibility to compete claiming the rules are discriminatory.The Court for Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland and the Swiss Supreme Court rejected Ms. Semenya’s legal challenge to the rules.Thursday’s ruling does not overturn the rules that ended Ms. Semenya’s running career, but the human rights court decided that the Swiss court had failed to carry out a rigorous examination of Ms. Semenya’s claims.It said on a 15-2 vote that her case should go back to the Swiss courts and awarded her $94,000. It dismissed other aspects of her case, including whether her privacy had been invaded, saying they did not fall within the court’s jurisdiction.Ms. Semenya is now a coach and no longer plans to run in sanctioned races, but has continued her legal fight on principle for other athletes with similar conditions.Gender eligibility has been a growing source of controversy in international athletics. An Algerian gold medal Olympic boxer, Imane Khelif, who battered female opponents at the Paris Games in 2024, will be required to undergo genetic sex screening before participating in upcoming bouts under rules recently approved by international boxing authorities.World Boxing will mandate sex testing for Ms. Khelif under a new “Sex, Age, and Weight” policy. It has informed the Algerian Boxing Federation that Ms. Khelif will not be allowed to participate in the female category at any World Boxing event until undergoing sex testing. The organization has since apologized for specifically naming Ms. Khelif in regard to the new policy.The boxer was banned from fighting mid-way through the 2023 championships but the International Olympic Committee allowed Ms. Khelif to participate the next year because the boxer’s passport was marked “female.”World Boxing has been approved as the governing body at the 2028 Los Angeles Games and said the new sex testing requirements will apply.Opposition to participation in female sports by individuals who have undergone sex-change procedures has become a rallying point for President Trump and other conservatives, and has brought more scrutiny to testing requirements.

New Hearing Ordered for Female Runner Barred From Competition Because of ‘Too Much’ Testosterone

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