The Sunday Mail
Intersex athletes will learn next month whether they will be forced to take drugs to suppress their testosterone levels, amid an ongoing row which could tarnish the World Championships in London.
South Africa’s Caster Semenya, Francine Niyonsaba of Burundi and Kenya’s Margaret Wambui could all win medals in the 800m final today, but there have been claims that they are helped to victory by naturally high levels of the male sex hormone.
Semenya, whose testosterone levels are roughly three times that of an average woman, has already been banned once from competing and ordered to take hormone lowering drugs by the International Association of Athletics Federations.
However, the practice of forcing hyperandrogenic athletes to take medication was suspended in 2015, following a challenge from Indian sprinter Dutee Chand.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport gave the IAAF two years to compile evidence demonstrating that high levels of testosterone had a significant impact on performance.
In the interim, Semenya, Niyonsaba and Wambui have swept the board at international competitions, including the Rio Olympics, leading Britain’s Lynsey Sharp to complain that female athletes are effectively competing in “two separate races”.
Semenya won bronze in the 1 500m last week, edging out British athlete Laura Muir by a whisker.
Next month the CAS is expected to rule on new evidence presented by the IAAF showing that high testosterone levels could shave around 2,5 seconds of an athlete’s time.
There is typically less than two seconds between runners in 800m heats.
However, sports science experts believe the court will refuse to take action for fear of opening themselves up to claims over other naturally occurring advantages, and accusations of sexism.
John Brewer, Professor of Applied Sports Science at Queen Mary University in Twickenham, said: “There is a reason that testosterone is a banned substance; it has an anaerobic affect and increases muscle strength and power, so someone with more of it is likely to have more speed.
“And that’s clearly an advantage. It’s not a level playing field.
“But what can you do about it? Do you ban them? Do you have a cut off point? Do you have a separate category?
“The problem is there will always be athletes who are at the top of a range of physiological values whether it is oxygen uptake, or capillary density, or the ability to tolerate high levels of lactic acid.
“Do you ban all Kenyan athletes because they train at high altitude and so can use oxygen more efficiently?
“Testosterone level is just one of many variables that impact performance.
“And it can work both ways.
“Someone with more testosterone generally gains more muscle mass and weighs more, so it can be like running with two extra bags of sugar.
“I think the court will keep things as is, and this row will keep rumbling on.” — Telegraph (UK)
