Two-time Olympic champion Caster Semenya says she is “not going to be ashamed” of being “different”, and will “fight for what is right” amid her ongoing dispute with athletics authorities.
Semenya, 32, was born with differences of sexual development (DSD) and cannot compete in female track events without taking testosterone-reducing drugs.
The South African wants to hold World Athletics to account for what she says is discrimination against athletes with hyperandrogenism and recently said she is turning her attention to “winning battles against the authorities” rather than collecting medals, with competing at the Paris 2024 Olympics no longer a goal.
In a wide-ranging interview with BBC Breakfast’s Sally Nugent, Semenya says:
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Hyperandrogenism is a medical condition characterised by higher than usual levels of testosterone, a hormone that increases muscle mass and strength.
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Under regulations introduced in 2018, athletes with DSD were only allowed to compete in female track events between 400m and the mile if they reduced their testosterone levels.
In March, World Athletics ruled that DSD athletes must now have hormone-suppressing treatment for six months before being eligible to compete in all female events.
“For me I believe if you are a woman, you are a woman,” said Semenya, who won Olympic 800m gold in 2012 and 2016 and is a three-time world champion over the same distance.
“No matter the differences you have. I have realised I want to live my life and fight for what I think and I believe in myself.
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“I know I am a woman and anything that comes along with it just accept it.”
Semenya ran in the 5,000m at last year’s World Championships in Oregon but failed to qualify for the final.
In July, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled in her favour in a case related to testosterone levels in female athletes.
“At the end of the day, I know I am different. I don’t care about the medical terms or what they tell me. Being born without a uterus or internal testicles. Those don’t make me less of a woman,” Semenya said.
“Those are the differences I was born with and I will embrace them. I am not going to be ashamed because I am different. I am different and special and I feel great about it.
“It comes with why we fight for women’s sport. The importance of women’s sport is not being taken seriously and we need to take charge of our own bodies. Decide what is right for us. Not another gender deciding what we should look like.
“If we are woman enough or not, it is up to us. We know and believe in what is right, then why must we stop.”—BBC
