Two-time Olympic Gold Medalist Caster Semenya appealed to the CAS against the IAAF's new rules.GETTY IMAGES
IAAF President Sebastien Coe said that the organization will not "soften its stance" on new regulations for female classification and is ready to defend it in the Court of Arbitration for Sport, according to Nick Said of REUTERS. Coe’s comments follow Tuesday’s meeting in London with Athletics South Africa President Aleck Skhosana in which the "concerns of ASA over the new ruling were discussed." ASA and South African double Olympic and triple world 800m champion Caster Semenya have "separately appealed to CAS to have the new regulations that limit the levels of naturally-occurring testosterone in female athletes set aside." Coe and Skhosana met to clarify their positions and with neither side "willing to budge," they have declared that CAS is the "best body to rule on the dispute." Coe said that there will be "no easing of the regulations," set to be introduced on Nov. 1, as the IAAF believes it is the "fairest solution to a tricky challenge facing the sport." Coe: "We need to create competition categories within our sport that ensures that success is determined by talent, dedication and hard work, rather than by other factors that are not considered fair or meaningful, such as the enormous physical advantages that an adult has over a child, or a male athlete has over a female athlete" (REUTERS, 6/27).
TESTOSTERONE RULES: The BBC reported the IAAF "promised to respect" the CAS decision on rules over testosterone levels in female athletes. The IAAF ruled some female runners with naturally high testosterone levels "will have to race against men or change events, unless they take medication." But Semenya said that she will fight the decision, calling it "unlawful." The IAAF and ASA agreed to honor any decision (BBC, 6/27).
