Das Urteil des internationalen Sportgerichtshof CAS im Fall Claudia Pechstein wird in der Presse einhellig als Meilenstein im Kampf gegen Doping bezeichnet. Der Indizienbeweis reicht nun aus, um positiv getestete Sportler zu verurteilen. Bei vielen Sportverbänden werden jetzt die Schubladen geöffnet und der Staub von lang angelegten Listen gepustet, die die Namen verdächtiger Sportler aufzählen, denen bisher ein direkter Beweis des Dopings nicht angelastet werden konnte. Nun seid ihr alle fällig, ihr Betrüger am Sport!

Oder vielleicht doch nicht? Immerhin geht es auch um den Ruf der Verbände und nicht zuletzt um Geld. Wer seinen Posten in den Chefsesseln der Sportfunktionäre nicht verlieren will, darf nicht den Eindruck und schon gar nicht den Beweis aufkommen lassen, sein Sport sei vom Doping unterwandert.

Die Tour de France hat es vorgemacht. Das Interesse des Zuschauers ist nach all den Doping-Skandalen gesunken und damit auch die TV-Einnahmen. Kann sich das die Fina oder der IAAF erlauben? Sicher, die Frage dürfte gar nicht gestellt werden, denn eigentlich müssen sich die Verbände für einen sauberen Sport einsetzen. Aber wer schreit laut „Hier!“, wenn die Karre einmal im Dreck festsitzt?

My first track meet ever, I lined up for the 100m dash next to a guy wearing Air Force 1s, jean shorts, and an NFL jersey.  All eight of us in the race had no idea how to get into the right stance, and were jumping around trying to get a jump on the starter’s gun.  When the gun did go off, my man in the Air Forces did not waste any time getting to the finish line.  While I was not the fastest guy, I had so much fun—just running. 

After winning the county championship in the 200m dash in the eighth grade, I had the opportunity to run with a track club during the summer.  Humility is something I learned quickly as I ran against the likes of Michael Grant, one of the fastest 13-year olds in the country.  I also learned what it was to have good form, and to develop my own by studying other athletes.  In high school I became a perfectionist, studying video after video of athletes like Justin Gatlin, Dwain Chambers, Aziz Zakari, and Maurice Greene.  I dreamed of dominance while watching Jesse Owens run and Bob Beamon jump.  I scoured professional athlete progressions on www.iaaf.org.  I began following other high school athletes on www.dyestat.com and www.milestat.com.  I raved about Kelly Willie and Jeremy Wariner facing off at the 2002 Golden West Invitational, both running sub-46 in the 400m dash http://www.dyestat.com/3us/6out/GoldenWest/previous.htm .  Brendan Christian ran 10.20 in the same meet!  I wanted that kind of speed.

I was fortunate that my football coaches in college allowed me to continue running track.  Both sports taught me extremely valuable lessons.  I developed a mental toughness on the track that enabled me to push through a sophomore season in which I fouled out of meets for both the indoor and outdoor seasons in the triple jump, until I set a huge personal record in the Southern Conference Championship.  I developed a physical toughness on the football field that created a craving for contact. 

My obsession with track and field statistics bordered ridiculous.  After track meets, I would spend hours studying results from meets across the country.  I kept a mental log of the progression of a number of athletes and offered my predictions for the NCAA Championships, US Championships, and World Championships whenever anyone showed interest.  I am itching for the indoor track and field season to begin.  I did spend some time this fall expanding my knowledge of cross country running and road racing.  Look forward to comprehensive commentary on track and field at the high school, collegiate, and professional levels.

Több ponton is változtatott a szabadtéri világbajnokságok programján a Nemzetközi Atlétikai Szövetség (IAAF) tanácsa.

A határozat szerint a vb-k kilenc naposak lesznek, s a legkomolyabb változtatások között van, hogy minden futószám, így a 100 méter esetében is csak maximum három fordulót rendeznek, holott eddig, elsősorban a klasszikus sprintszámban négyszer futottak a legjobbak.

Szintén újdonság, hogy a kilencből egy napon csak az utcai számokat rendeznek, illetve szabályba fektették, hogy az esti programok nem tarthatnak három óránál tovább, s ezeken csak elődöntőkre és döntőkre kerülhet sor. A nyitó nap kivételével minden este minimum hat döntőre, vagy öt fináléra és jelentős elődöntőkre kerül majd sor, az előfutamokat és selejtezőket pedig csak délelőtt bonyolíthatják le.

A szövetség tekintettel volt a duplázó atlétákra, így előírja, hogy a programot úgy kell kialakítani, hogy aki akar az indulhasson 100-on és 200-on, 200-on és 400-on, 800 és 1500 méteren, 5.000 és 10.000 méteren, távol- és hármasugrásban, illetve hétpróbában és távolugrásban.

A dobószámokkal kapcsolatban úgy határozott a testület, hogy a gerelyhajítás és a kalapácsvetés selejtezője és fináléja között egy pihenőnapot kell beiktatni, míg súlylökésben és diszkoszvetésben a kvalifikációt másnap követi a döntő.

Forrás: telesport.hu/MTI

Ramzi was one of five other athletes from the games who was later caught with positive results for the drug, leading to a wide variety of surprise, opinion and critique.

The chairman of the London 2012 Organizing Committee, Sebastian Coe (who is also IAAF vice president and a double Olympic 1500 metre champion) was quoted in the Telegraph as saying, “That was the right decision. Cheats cannot prosper in our sport and people will realize that sooner or later.”

From the reactions that I’ve heard this week, I’ve been thinking about what Coe said, and in this case, it would appear to be true. But the actions of athletic cheaters, like their white-collared counterparts, don’t just affect their own standing or accomplishments. Asbel Kiprop of Kenya and Nicholas Willis of New Zealand (pictured below on either side of Ramzi) came in second and third place respectively, and have been robbed of their experience of winning gold and silver, instead of the silver and bronze they received. Through Ramzi’s actions, they will never get that experience back.

Many (or realistically, 99.9 per cent) of us will never know what it is like to run in the Olympics or even to complete at an elite level. Watching the immense talent of these world-class athletes inspires and motivates us, showing us what heights the sport can be taken to given the right mix of training, determination and genetics.

We invest a little of ourselves in watching the elite runners, recognizing the shared passion and struggle, the investment and emotion inherent in what we do. So when one of the immortal elite fall, they fall far and they fall hard.

Coe is right when he says they won’t prosper (providing they’re caught). In truth, Ramzi will likely never regain the trust or credibility he has lost. In effect, his promising career is now over. And here is where I begin to find a sense of compassion for him on a human level. All the years, hours and countless miles he willingly sacrificed to the sport; all the effort and toil he went through has now been for nothing. I wonder what the moments leading up to him deciding to take the CERA were like; what situations, actions or words pushed him over the line of elite performance and into the realm of doping? It leaves one to ask the unanswerable question of, “why?”

The AP in Johannesburg reports that the South African sports ministry says 800 world champion Caster Semenya will keep her gold medal.

Caster Semenya has been under humiliating public scrutiny for several months now, when it was made public that the gold medal winning world champion female runner was suspected of having been born with male sex organs and had an unusual amount of testosterone for an actual woman.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intersex

Caster was forced to take a gender test, and the alledged test results were leaked, and falsely reported internationally.The leaked results stated that Caster was rumored to have been proven to be a male, and a female at the same time.The report of the results were confusing at best.

The actual results of the gender test will remain closed and confidential, saving Caster from any more intimate public scrutiny,it is truly the right thing to do in this case.

The South African sports ministry pushed the IAAF to keep the recent gender test results strictly between patient and doctor. Once the IAAF agreed, the ministry announced today the confidentiality and urged South Africans and media to please respect Semenya’s privacy.

She will also be allowed to keep the prize money winnings she earned in August at the IAAF World Championships in Berlin in where she won the gold medal by blowing out the competition. That is where suspicion grew about her actual gender, based on her deep voice, and muscular build.

A quote reported in the Huffington Post explains the Caster Semenya’s gender qualifications test situation as follows….

She was tested for not being female enough even though the kind of conditions required to disqualify a self-identified girl from competing in boys sports are quite extreme. In fact, according to the IAAF’s own policy document on gender verification (2006), women can compete even if they are genetically male:

Conditions that should be allowed: (a) Those conditions that accord no advantage over other females:
- Androgen insensitivity syndrome (Complete or almost complete – previously called testicular feminization);
- Gonadal dysgenesis (gonads should be removed surgically to avoid
malignancy);
- Turner’s syndrome.

As well, athletes who choose to have sex changes are permitted to continue to compete in sport as long as they have completed a mandatory number of months in hormone therapy…

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/emma-rubysachs/semenyas-struggle-teaches_b_363668.html

I did not know that there were rules that governed intersex athletes in international sports, but, given that they do exist, and some may excel in sports, I think that the International Sports authorities have shown some proactive leadership in specifying the qualifications for the intersex athlete around the world.

The official ruling clears Caster Semenya and the South African Sports association of any wrongdoing, or malicious intent, like the violations of doping and steroid abuse that seems to be so prevalent among international athletes covering a wide range of sports.

I personally look forward to Caster continuing in her chosen field of sport, and I am sure that she will continue to set new world records, and represent her country well in the coming Olympics, should she choose to compete.

For more information on the life and times of world champion runner Caster Semenya, please follow this link…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caster_Semenya

Jag har bloggat om Caster Semenya ett antal gånger, och väntat på besked om besked om det såkallade könstestet. För mig är det nämligen inte det viktiga om jag får veta vad hon har för eventuell diagnos – utan att hon blir behandlad med värdighet. Det har varit rent ut sagt jävligt ont om respekt för hennes privatliv när journalister, bloggare och allsköns nätollare har varit och grävt i hennes underliv, bildligt talat. En artonåring med ett medfött funktions- eh, nej, det går kanske inte att kalla det för funktionshinder när anledningen till varför hon började utredas var för att hon sprang så fort.

Hursomhelst: Nu meddelar IAAF att oavsett vad testet visar kommer hon att få behålla sin guldmedalj från Berlin, och resultatet av testet kommer att hemlighållas. Nu är jag tyvärr ganska säker på att det ändå kommer att läcka ut, men det hedrar dem att de fattar ett sådant beslut.

“She is like a raped person. She is afraid of herself and does not want anyone near her. If she commits suicide, it will be on all our heads.”

Så sa en representant för Sydafrikas sportkommitté i september. Vi får hoppas att hon långsamt börjar återhämta sig och må lite bättre snart. För jag vill tolka det som han säger i ett bredare perspektiv: Om hon skulle ta livet av sig skulle skulden ligga på alla de som har hånat henne, kallat henne för “könsfuskare”, spekulerat i hennes “egentliga” kön, föreslagit olika straff för hennes “brott” och så vidare, utan någon som helst respekt.

Caster Semenya är knappt en kvinna – men det är inte för att hon förmodligen är intersexuell som jag säger det, utan för att hon är tonåring. Hon är arton år, och för mig är hon en symbol för styrka. De förföljelser hon utsatts för är typiska men samtidigt inte; alla transfoba påhopp har gemensamma drag. Jag hoppas att hon landar på fötterna. För mig behöver hon inte bevisa sin könsidentitet eller något alls; jag är glad bara om hon orkar leva. Och jag hoppas verkligen att det här känns lite, litegrann som en upprättelse.

Att överleva transfobi är en prestation i sig. Caster Semenya är en hjälte – inte för att hon springer fort, utan för att hon orkar leva.

Uppdatering: Johan Hilton skriver skitbra, och SvD har en bra artikel. Läs även andra bloggares intressanta åsikter om Caster Semenya, intersexualism, kön, könsorgan, genus, Sydafrika, biologi, könsidentitet, transfobi, hat, VM, Berlin, friidrott, sport, könsfusk, HBTQ, transpersoner, psykisk hälsa, självmord, hjältar

http://www.foxnews.com/search-results/m/25989372/male-or-female.htm

Fox news, you’ve surpassed yourselves once again. But, let’s be fair, how many people are thinking the same thing?

Over fifty years ago, gender testing was introduced in sport to divide women and men into binary categories to maintain an equal sporting arena for women’s participation. The inception of testing in 1966 was alleged to have been implemented based on suspicions that Eastern block men were entering female competition, whereby competitors as a result were asked to parade naked in front of gynecologists to confirm their gender (Ferguson-Smith, 1998). Two years later, in 1968, the first official gender testing was introduced in the Mexico Olympic Games based on chromosomal division in order to overcome the derogatory procedure, a practice that continued until as recently as 1998. The halt to gender testing eventually came in recognition that such procedures excluded female participants deemed to have Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (AIS), which means that legally-classified women can in fact possess (without physical masculine traits) the typically male (XY) chromosome as opposed to the female (XX) chromosome. Such was the case of Maria Patino in 1995, who legally competed as a woman but failed a sex verification test on the basis of her AIS condition and whose story immediately hit the popular media, resulting in a stripping of her medals, public humiliation, and withdrawal of university scholarships. Patino was not alone, however, and between 1972 and 1984, thirteen women were excluded from competition on the basis of AIS. The 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games saw another 5 women identified as AIS and ineligible to compete, followed by another 8 in the 1996 Atlanta Games, by which time discussions amongst the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) officials allowed them to compete. Finally, in 1998, gender testing was officially called to a halt, and after further speculation regarding sex-reassignment, official regulations outlined that trans-sexual athletes could also compete in female sport under stringent conditions, which ensured that no advantages could be held over “natural” female athletes.

Despite the rejection of gender testing over a decade ago, a debate concerning gender testing has once again been brought to the media spotlight. Eighteen-year old South African female runner, Caster Semenya, recently took the world by storm, winning the 800m in the Track and Field World Championship in Berlin, 2009 with a significant margin. What followed, however, were a series of speculations and accusations with regard to Semenya’s gender and status as a female. Due to her incredible success, in addition to her alleged masculine appearance, Semenya was forced into gender testing, a procedure that was set to level her as an imposter in women’s sport, an outsider with an unfair advantage. News reports widely indicated Semenya’s “leaked” status as a hermaphrodite, and further reported on the political controversy surrounding South African athletic official’s withhold of information to those involved in the case. However, the IAAF, which ordered the tests, has yet to publically reveal the results, and Semenya’s case has slowly dissipated into the background and out of the limelight.

Regardless of the verification results, the way Semenya has been dealt with ought to, and has, caused controversy and outrage in the sporting community. Semenya’s “identity” as a black, South African, female athlete, which has been challenged on account of her gender, not only throws into question the notion of “identity” per se but, more precisely, the formation of solidarity or community support of Semenya’s position. 

Watch the clip of Fox News. According to the “specialist” it could be that, although Semenya’s genitalia are female, and therefore could have been born with XY chromosomes (male), (s)he may have a mutation and therefore actually be a man with testes which haven’t descended. Because 5/1000 births apparently share the same fate…OK. But then, apparently the “real” question becomes, “is (s)he making testosterone”?

Let’s re-think this. The reason we care is because, ultimately, we want “fair competition”. But by fair competition we naturally assume that men have an advantage over women. Therefore we are drawn to the conclusion that if our athlete is deemed to be a man, “he” can’t compete amongst women. I have several arguments as to why this is ridiculous but here’s my favourite to share: We wouldn’t dream of racially segregating sport EVEN THOUGH the general populace appears to still believe that black athletes have a “natural” advantage over white athletes (RIDICULOUS). So why are we maintaining the gender division. The term “SEPARATE BUT EQUAL” may ring some bells. Uh hum. This reminds me of the Plessy v Ferguson case in the US in 1896, allowing de jure racial segregation which, years later, was overturned during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and 1960’s through the landmark case in 1954 of Brown V Board of Education, ruling that separate but equal reaffirmed discrimination and was therefore unjust. Surprisingly then, why in the hell does this term remain in sport???

“Sexual discrimination is a widespread phenomenon. However in Western societies, explicit sexual discrimination, when exposed, is seldom defended straightforwardly. There is one remarkable exception to this, however. Within sports sexual discrimination is taken for granted. It is assumed that, in many sports contexts, it is appropriate to discriminate (distinguish) between women and men and to have men competing exclusively with men, and women competing exclusively with women (Tanssjo, 2005, p.101).”

Oh, and Fox news, your last comment. Classic: “this kind of work is not going to be covered by Obama care”. Need I say more?

Sono stato per un mese da fine luglio a fine agosto a Berlino. Una piacevole scoperta, una bellissima città, anche se ho potuto visitarla, essendo impegnato per lavoro, solo tre ore in una mattina alla fine di agosto. Mi riprometto di tornarci, le poche cose che ho visto, anche la sera quando uscivo per la cena, mi hanno lasciato un’ottima impressione della città. Quello che sono riuscito a fare è stato parlare molto con i locali. Grazie agli amici afteriani, ero lì per i campionati mondiali di atletica e mi sono intrattenuto spesso con i volontari, tutti tedeschi, molti berlinesi. E li ho avuto impressione che la caduta del muro ha avuto una valenza più per noi che per loro. I giovani, quelli che non hanno vissuto quei momenti, se ne fregavano quasi, è stata una cosa come un’altra, un evento importante ma del quale hanno solo sentito parlare. Gli adulti invece erano divisi in due: quelli dell’est parevano contenti della riunificazione, quelli dell’ovest non così tanto. I contenti dell’est erano soprattutto quelli di Berlino, quelli che invece vivevano nelle altre città dell’ex DDR l’hanno vissuto, almeno quelli che ho incontrato io, con piacere, ma in maniera non così esaltante. Una signora di Berlino ovest, ad esempio, continuava a chiamare “loro” quelli di Berlino est. Mi ha detto, in perfetto italiano, quindi non posso non aver capito bene (certo, se lo avesse detto in napoletano sarebbe stato meglio), che quelli dell’ovest non si relazionano con quelli dell’est. “Sai – mi ha detto – una mia mica addirittura convive con uno dell’est. Io non potrei mai”. Una frase che ho sentito da più di una persona. Quelli dell’ovest, soprattutto, sono incazzati per gli aiuti piovuti all’est, per il deprezzamento del marco rispetto alla moneta dell’est. Si considerano comunque due germanie. Aveva ragione la Merkel a dire che la riunificazione succeduta alla caduta del muro non è stata completata. Verissimo. Io spero solo che la caduta di quel muro, evento sensazionale e commovente (anche girando per quei luoghi oggi si avverte una certa emozione), possa essere d’esempio e convivere ad abbattere quei muri, anche piccoli, che resistono, molti dei quali sono proprio nel sud est asiatico. Ultima notazione. Ho seguito la bella cerimonia e mi ha colpito l’assenza di Obama. Molto. Ad un evento del genere, di portata così storica, non si doveva mancare. Dopotutto si sapeva che c’era. Certo, forse ce ne sarà un altro fra 10 anni, auguro ad Obama di essere ancora al potere in quei giorni. Ma stasera doveva esserci. Non doveva mancare. Tanto più che il suo programma per quel giorno non mi pare prevedesse eventi di così vitale importanza. Non a caso il web si è risentito e basta googlare “obama berlin” o “obama absence berlin” che appiano newsgroup, giornali e blog che criticano il presidente americano. L’invio del video, poi, secondo me è stato di cattivo gusto. Perchè Obama non c’è andato? Sul web ci sono tante ipotesi. Io ne sposo una sola. Durante la sua campagna elettorale, ad Obama fu vietato, dal governo tedesco, di tenere un comizio dinanzi alla porta di Brandeburgo. Dovette ripiegare in un altro luogo, dinanzi alla Siegessäule, la colonna della vittoria di Wendersiana memoria, dove fu molto applaudito. Voleva imitare Regan, che nel 1987 dinanzi alla porta di Brandeburgo disse ”Mr. Gorbacev, butti giù questo muro”, oppure JFK, che dal balcone del municipio pronunciò la famosa “Ich bin ein Berliner”, “sono un berlinese”. Certe cose non si dimenticano e qualcuno se le lega al dito.

The Philippine International Marathon 2009, a Run for the Pasig River to be held on November 08, 2009 is being managed by Gran Obra, Inc. under the supervision of Race Director Rudy Biscocho.

The event includes a marathon, marathon relay of 20 or 40 runners, 10K, 5K, and 3K races which have been approved and certified by the Philippine Amateur Track and Field Association (PATAFA) and will be carried out in accordance with the regulations and sanctions of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).  Water stations will be situated every 2 km from starting line to finish line according to the organizers.

Route

For everyone’s convenience I’ve rendered the text-based directional map into a visual one via Google Earth (unofficial):

Rough rendering of PIM Marathon Route (consult your race kit for the official route)

Registration

Registration fee for each individual runner is Php250 for all categories.  You may register for this race through the following:

Race Packets Claiming

• Registrants from September 1-30, 2009 may start claiming their race packets from October 17, 2009 until November 4, 2009
• Registrants from October 1-15, 2009 may start claiming their race packets from October 24, 2009 until November 4, 2009
• Registrants from October 16-30, 2009 may start claiming their race packets from October 31, 2009 until November 4, 2009

Race packets may be claimed in the same outlet/registration center where they submitted their registration form.

All unclaimed race packets after designated dates will be turned over to the Kapit Bisig Head Office, Mother Ignacia Ave., Quezon City with telephone nos. 416-1911 or 415-2272 loc 3797 and may be claimed on November 6, 2009.

Reminders

Here are some reminders from the organizers:

Assembly:

Km 0, Roxas Blvd.

Starting time:

Cutoff Time:

Parking:

Vehicle parking is available at T.M. Kalaw and the South drive of Quirino Grandstand.

Restrooms:

Portalets are located at the assembly area and at the finish area at the Quirino Grandstand.

Check-in service:

Only clothing will be accepted for check-in. No bottles, coolers, or other items. We assume no responsibility for the items checked-in.

Finishing:

Upon crossing the finish line, you will be video recorded, timed, and directed into a chute where the barcode tag on your number WILL BE REMOVED.  Move through the chute as quickly as possible but do not pass other runners or transfer to other chutes or your time and the other runners will be displaced.  Please do not talk to the timers while the race is in progress as distraction can result to errors.  Please exit as soon as you are able.  To facilitate your exit you may remove the bar code tag yourself while in the chute and hand them over to the tag puller at the end of your chute.  Once you have passed through the finish area, do not return.  Be courteous and make room for other runners.

NTT Europe Online is attending the 2nd annual Leaders in Football (LiF) event on October 7th and 8th at Chelsea FC where we will be hosting a digital football forum, where digital specialists from all over the football and sporting world will meet to discuss current challenges and new strategies for addressing multimedia content, VOD, live streaming and the future.

LiF is the world’s most exclusive football business event where 1,000 senior executives linked to international clubs, leagues, federations and brands come together over 3 nights and 2 days at Chelsea FC to learn, network and do business.

At LiF, NTT Europe Online will show delegates the benefits that our technology solutions for the sports industry are providing for the likes of UEFA, FIFA, IaaF, Arsenal and Liverpool FC to name a few.

Attendees and speakers include former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson, Fulham manager Roy Hodgson, UEFA Technical Director Andy Roxburgh and Jeremy Darroch, CEO at BSkyB.

John Lancaster in “The London Review of Books” (a publication that is decent, except for publishing the rants of the South African neoconservative, R W Johnson) on the prejudices exposed by reactions to Caster Semenya.

At 18, South African middle-distance runner Caster Semenya has garnered athletic achievements that anyone could admire.

She won the 800 meter gold medal at the Berlin World Championships in Athletics in August and at the junior level in competitions earlier this year and in 2008. Not only did she win gold medals, she broke personal, national and championship records. Despite her success, Semenya hasn’t been reveling in her wins. Following her win in Berlin, questions regarding Semenya’s sex began to arise, with accusations that she was actually male.

The media starts a blitz

Ever since this story broke, I’ve been following Semenya and reports from the International Association of Athletics Federations, or IAAF, which is the organization that oversees the World Championships, closely. I have been running competitively off and on since I was in junior high school and have always enjoyed the sport. The running group I am currently a part of was hooked on every race at the World Championships, so when Semenya won the race, a discussion over her sex became a hot topic during one of our workouts. Most everyone agreed that Semenya had very masculine characteristics and questioned her “femaleness.”

Initially, I didn’t think too much of that conversation, but after media reports continued to question Semenya’s sex and the IAAF decided to conduct gender tests that I began to think about it more critically. I recall hearing a report on NPR on the drive home from work one afternoon about Semenya. The person being interviewed by Robert Segal, host of NPR’s All Things Considered, remarked that Semenya did have some very striking masculine characteristics, including a deep voice. I decided to find a clip of her voice on the web to judge for myself, but found it difficult to make a judgment because she does have an accent. This video is an interview with Semenya taken after her 800 meter victory in Berlin. Hear for yourself:

So far, the IAAF has officially been mum on the situation. They released a statement saying they would not comment on the gender tests being conducted on Semenya. However, reports surfaced earlier this month that Semenya is an intersex individual with both male and female organs. This caused an uproar in her home country and debate commenced over what characteristics make a woman or not. Many have criticized how the IAAF has handled the situation thus far, including American track star Michael Johnson, who said the situation was nothing short of embarrassing for the teenager.

Organs or no organs, Semenya’s self-identity is female

Reading Cheryl Chase’s article, “Affronting Reason,” in which Chase discusses the challenges she faced growing up as she tried to understand her identity and finally finding out she was intersex, helped me better understand Semenya’s position. Some critics say that the South African organization that monitors its track athletes knew Semenya was intersex prior to her competing in the Berlin race. Semenya and her family deny this, though, and contend that she is a woman. Regardless of what chromosomes or whatever battery of tests Semenya is receiving from the IAAF say about her sex, one this is certain: Semenya lives her life as a woman and sees herself as one.

The IAAF began monitoring gender in the 1960s, but it wasn’t until the late 80s that chromosome testing was a norm. However, the organization abandoned chromosome testing in 1991 for determining gender. Now, the IAAF does a series of tests, outlined here, which include having athletes see a variety of experts on gender to determine if they are male or female.

So far media rumors have stated that Semenya has been seeing a therapist to deal with the news that she is intersex, but no official news has been released from either her family or the IAAF and none is expected until November when the IAAF council meets.

The gender divide in sports

While Semenya’s private life has been thrown into the spotlight, the most basic question the IAAF is attempting to answer is whether Semenya had an unfair advantage in the race and if she should be permitted to keep her gold medal. The bigger question is whether Semenya will be allowed to continue to race.

No one becomes a runner because they are forced to do so. To run is to have a passion and love for the sport. Some of the runners I know joke that running is often seen as a form of punishment in other sports for being late to practice or disobeying your coach.

Semenya wouldn’t run if she didn’t love it. If the IAAF were to ban her from competing against other women or even men for that matter, I could imagine it would be nothing short of devastating. It doesn’t make sense for a talented runner to prevented from doing something she is clearly good at. Unfortunately, society continues to overlook the fuzzy line gender stands upon. Perhaps in the future sports will not be divided by gender. It seems that future is still in question.

La manifestazione sulla libertà di stampa è stata rinviata al 3 ottobre, e speriamo di essere in città per iscriverci nel novero dei farabutti.

Ogni tanto però, davanti a uno schermo o a una paginata, mi viene da fare la mia mini-manifestazione per la precisione dell’informazione.

Domenica, zappettando qua e là prima di degustare un bel Fenech-Hilton, getto un’occhiata alle notizie che scorrono in basso su RaiNews 24, e scorgo: Isinbayeva nuovo record a 5.07, o qualcosa del genere. Faccio un saltino su George (sarebbe il nostro divano), commentando con l’interessatissima Hermione: “Hai capito la Yelena, dopo il bagno berlinese una sventola dopo l’altra, eh? Perfetto Bubka style!” Mi riprometto di approfondire come e dove del record, quindi mi dedico ai notevoli ammazzamenti di Carnimeo.

Oggi, finalmente, mi ricordo della cosa, e vado a dare un’occhiata. Plano in primis sul sito della IAAF: mi si dice che domenica c’era un meeting a Shanghai, ma mentre Gay e Jeter hanno fatto sfracelli e Liu Xiang è tornato alla grande, la russa di Formia ha vinto facile a 4.65 e ha toppato la prova a 5.06. Strange, very strange. Provo allora su Wiki, ma pure lì il record continua a essere quello di Zurigo, e sul sito ufficiale di lei, idem.

Mumble mumble. Digito sul motorino di ricerca: yelena isinbayeva record 5.07 e premo invio. Entro con un leggero stordimento in una realtà parallela dove c’è un nuovo record del mondo nell’asta femminile stabilito il 20 settembre a Sganghai. Me lo dicono qui, pure qui, o anche qui. Ci stanno poi quelli che riportano correttamente la notizia, ma mi fossi limitato alla prima impressione, sarei rimasto nella beata convinzione che il suo 28° record Isi l’avesse messo in saccoccia.

Direte: e vabbeh, e che sarà mai. Per carità, l’esempio era minimo, eppure: possibile non si riesca a spendere un minuto per verificare una fonte, allo stesso modo che non ci si prende il tempo che ci vuole per sistemare sintassi e verificare refusi, non solo nello strabordante on line, ma su carta stampata e tv, da cui la valanga di perchè e simili brutture che ci sta sommergendo? Certo, mi piace avere tante fonti, tanti spunti, tanto da leggere, tanto da imparare. Magari non strapazzando troppo la lingua e la verità, ecco.

Reports are emerging about the extent of world-beating 800 meter track and field athlete, Caster Semenya, and of the collusion of South Africa’s track and field officials (who pretended they were on her side) with the world body, the IAAF. South Africa’s “Mail & Guardian” has details of the kind of “testing” she’s been subjected to:

… Semenya was subjected to humiliating tests in South Africa even before the gender row erupted.

“The tests took almost two hours and Semenya became frustrated and even angry over the humiliating nature of the tests,” [Johannesburg Afrikaans newspaper] Beeld quoted ASA’s former head coach, Wilfred Daniels, as saying of the tests carried out in South Africa.

Beeld said Semenya was “bitterly upset” when photographs of her private parts were taken during the examinations.

“Her feet were in stirrups when the photographs were taken,” reportedly Daniels said.

ASA officials were not immediately available for comment on the report.

Semenya was led to believe she would undergo drug tests in South Africa, Beeld said.

Eighteen year old South African track athlete Caster Semenya has been spotlighted in the news for the past few weeks but the highlights read a very different story than her 800 Meter Dash time while participating in the world championships. The IAAF, International Association of Athletics Federation, demanded a test before Semenya could claim her gold medal.

According to a 2000 Journal of the American Medical Association article over 11,000 women competing over a span of five Olympics have had their gender brought into question. Twenty-seven of which were found to have genetic “gender” disorders. Many experts worry about the psychological consequences of such public coverage after the suicide attempt of a female athlete who tested male just two years prior. One of Semenya’s coaches quit out of shame for lying to her about what she was being tested for, he told her she was taking a doping test.

This story however does end well, upon Semenya’s return home her fellow South Africans rally in support of her and promise they will not allow her gold medal to be taken from her. President of Athletics South Africa even resigned from the IAAF to show his disapproval for the way in which Semenya was treated.

It is important to remember that gender is socially constructed and cannot be tested for. Semenya fell short of the gender expectations of the IAAF and so her actual sex was tested for. The stereotypes of gender do not solely affect those who identify as transgender. The protection of one’s gender identity and expression is something all can benefit from.

Reprinted from the McGill Daily. I’m mostly satisfied with this. Except for ‘whomever’. I mean – seriously? I tried to edit it a bit to make it use less highfalutin language. I don’t forget my audience.

~~

Hyde Park: Let Caster Semenya choose how to live

Since I wrote about Caster Semenya (“Transcending sex and gender binaries,” Commentary, August 31), the South African runner and gold medallist forced to undergo sex determination testing by the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF), there have been a number of troubling developments in the case.

Last Thursday, the Australian press published rumours about Semenya’s test results, stating that Semenya is a “hermaphrodite.” The Canadian, American, and British press have parroted this story. However, the IAAF has not actually released its findings on Semenya, so we don’t know what the official results are. This coverage has wronged Semenya in two ways.

First, the press has used the word “hermaphrodite,” which is at best inaccurate and outdated, and at worst an otherizing and sensationalizing term.

A hermaphrodite, technically, is someone who has both male and female genitalia. The reports contradict this by stating that Semenya has undescended testes and XY chromosomes, characteristics which indicate that Semenya probably has Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (AIS), a condition that prevents a person with XY chromosomes from developing along typically “male” lines because the body fails to respond to testosterone. Instead, people with AIS share the physical characteristics of XX females, except for ovaries and a uterus.

Second, the media has violated Semenya’s privacy, while – ironically – protecting the privacy of whomever started the test-result rumours. All this may have already caused Semenya intense emotional harm – just look at the abruptness with which Semenya dropped out of a race last Saturday, just after the news broke, or how Semenya is reportedly under suicide watch.

The question is this: What happens to Caster Semenya, now that this story, regardless of its truthfulness, is out in the public sphere?

Semenya should certainly keep the gold medal. Imagine your medical history, especially regarding a socially stigmatized condition related to your sex, discussed openly in the international press. How would you feel? Then add to that the pain of losing a gold medal and having a race that came approximately two seconds away from the women’s world record invalidated. How would you feel then?

I contend, then, that the IAAF’s and the media’s violation of Semenya’s privacy alone morally justifies letting Semenya keep the medal.

In any case, if Semenya has AIS, she would not be a “hermaphrodite” and she would not be disqualified from competition – the IAAF already allows people with “complete or almost complete Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome” to compete without question.

However, for those who are concerned about whether Semenya has an “unfair advantage” due to having testes, we should look again at these reports. As I’ve said, if they’re correct, Semenya has AIS. So even though Semenya supposedly has undescended testes that produce more testosterone than the “female” mean, Semenya’s body cannot turn that testosterone into the muscle advantage cited as the reason for sex segregation in sports. Semenya probably does have other advantages, such as increased height, because of AIS. However, we routinely allow athletes who are especially tall to compete. This isn’t much of an unfair advantage. The only reason Semenya’s genetics are even an issue here is because the potentially advantageous genes in question might be on those socially fraught sex chromosomes.

The next question is whether Semenya will be able to compete again. Unfortunately, Semenya will likely be pressured into having the testes removed, both by the sports establishment, which will seek to avoid controversy about allowing Semenya to compete, and by the medical establishment, which usually recommends surgery to remove internal testes in all cases, officially because the testes are at risk for developing cancer. However, since it’s possible to provide appropriate care by monitoring the testes and removing them when the first signs of cancer appear, I suspect that a better explanation is the medical establishment’s historical practice of “normalizing” or “correcting” intersex people’s genitalia. If Semenya wants to run again, it seems very likely that these organs will have to be removed.

Following that surgery, good medical practice would offer Semenya a choice between “male” and “female” hormone replacement therapy. Sadly, South Africa’s strong support for Semenya during this spat probably comes with the price of ostracizing the runner if Semenya doesn’t want “female” hormone replacement therapy.

Everyone – including the IAAF, the media, and even Semenya’s South African supporters – needs to step back and let Semenya alone decide how to proceed. At present, any involvement with this case will only lead to more harm and will interfere with Semenya’s ability to make these deeply personal decisions.

Con la World Athletics Final di Salonicco dello scorso fine settimana si è conclusa la stagione dei grandi meeting di atletica. La maggior parte degli atleti più forti ha quindi smesso di gareggiare e immagino si starà godendo le vacanze prima di ricominciare ad allenarsi.

Grazie al punteggio pieno e doppio che sono riuscita a “rubare” (visto il modo in cui ho fatto la squadra) per quest’ultimo appuntamento, sono riuscita a risalire un po’ la classifica nel gioco di atletica che mi ha accompagnato (a volte perseguitato) durante tutta l’estate, cioè il Fantasy Athletics della Iaaf.
Spero che il prossimo anno questo gioco verrà riproposto dalla Iaaf, visto che ormai ho scoperto che basta impostare un avviso via email del calendario di Google per ricordarmi di fare la squadra prima di ogni meeting.

Ora deve solo finire la stagione delle gare anche per me.

agb

so unless you’ve been living under a rock, i’m sure you’re aware of the controversy surrounding south african runner caster semenya and her recent world record breaking sprint in berlin. awarded gold at the time, she was quickly accused of being a man and rushed into gender testing as the worlds media watched with baited breath.

ok, so to start off, i feel terribly bad for poor caster. just eighteen and being accused of being a man. pretty harsh. and it only gets worse. just the other day news leaked that the gender tests show semenya is in fact a hermaphrodite with no womb, and internal testes instead. now, it must be hard enough coming to terms with the discovery that you are intersex without the whole world finding out at the same time as you. this has got to be shattering for the poor girl. i actually rather like caster semenya, even though her name does sort of seem like a mad gab clue for ‘caster’s a man, yeah?’

anyway, this all got me wondering what happens in the sporting world to intersex individuals. despite evidence that sex is not so simply divided into two categories, that is the sporting world is really set up for. i understand that the IAAF are thinking of letting caster keep her medal but no longer compete as a lady but where do you draw the line? could she compete as a man?

to my thinking the only fair way to make the divide, while keeping the simplicity of the current system, would be to have anyone showing more than a certain percentage male physical qualities having to compete as a man. not to sound sexist, but surely the only reason for the women’s categories in sporting is because they aren’t good enough to compete with the men in the first place so if they are protectionist in nature then this would have to be continued. you can’t tell someone flat out that they can’t compete but you could make a hard line over which someone must compete in the men’s grouping.

is that fair? i’m sure a feminist is somewhere heating up a root vegetable stew and thinking that i’m incredibly patronising to women but i really can’t think of another way to dice this conundrum. tough questions for the 21st century post-modern society. nothing is simply black or white anymore, everything has a grey area now and i love it. if nothing else it provides me with more blog fodder, blodder if you will.

MAKE LOVE NOT GENDER TESTS!

Sutherland, Bronze medalist from Beijing, was 27. Photo from Getty Images

Boxing

Darren Sutherland of Ireland was found dead in his apartment in London. Sutherland was the bronze medalist in the middleweight division at last summer’s Olympics in Beijing. He was found by his manager Frank Maloney, who also trained former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis. Sutherland was 4-0 in his professional career after the debut and was scheduled to have his next bout on Oct. 16. He was 27.

Track & Field

Usain Bolt, Tyson Gay, Carmelita Jeter, Sanya Richards, Bridgette Foster-Hylton and Kenenisa Bekele were among the big winners at the World Athletic Finals in Greece this past weekend. Bolt capped his electrifying 2009 outdoor season with a meet record 19.63 seconds in the men’s 200 meters. American Wallace Spearmon took second in 20.21 seconds. Meanwhile, Jeter ran the third fastest time in the 100-meters, beating out Jamaicans Shelly Ann-Fraser and Kerron Stewart with a blistering time 10.67 seconds.

Gay edged out Asafa Powell yet again in the men’s 100-meters, winning in 9.88 seconds over Powell who finished in 9.90. American Doc Patton was third. Richards continued her undefeated run in the 400 meters, storming back to win in 49.95 seconds over Novelene Williams-Mills (50.34 seconds) and Sherricka Williams (50.49) of Jamaica. Defending world champion Foster-Hylton continued her hot streak, edging out Dawn Harper of the U.S. in the 100-meter hurdles with a winning time of 12.58 seconds.

Kenenisa Bekele of Ethiopia continued his dominance in distance running, beating out Bernard Lagat in the men’s 3000-meters with a time of 8:03.79. Other winners from the World Athletics Final included Americans Allyson Felix, who edged countrywoman Sanya Richards, in the 200, Lashawn Merritt in the men’s 400, Kerron Clement in the men’s 400 hurdles, Bittany Reese in the long jump and Christian Cantwell in men’s shotput. Also winning was world record holder Yelena Isinbayeva of Russia in women’s pole vault, Croatia’s Blanka Vlasic in women’s high jump, world champion Ryan Braithwaite of the Bahamas in the men’s 110 hurdles and Melanie Walker of Jamaica in the women’s 400 hurdles.

Soccer

Costa Rica has fired coach Rodrigo Kenton, following the team’s three-game slide in World Cup Qualifying that now has the club looking from the outside of the CONCACAF group which they once lead three weeks ago. Costa Rica is fourth in the group with the No. 4 team facing the No. 5 team from the South American group in a playoff for a spot in next year World Cup Finals in South Africa. They have matches coming up on Oct. 10 against Trinidad & Tobago and close qualifying at the United States in Washington D.C. on Oct. 14.

Gymnastics

Samanth Peszek, who was part of the U.S. women’s  gymnastics team that won silver last summer in Beijing, has pulled out of the gymnastics world championships scheduled to take place Oct. 10-13 in London. Peszek is scheduled to have surgury to repair a torn labrum. The shoulder injury also kept her from competing in the all-around competition in last month’s national championships, but she placed second in the balance beam. Peszek, who was one of the 10 gymnast selected to participate in the selection camp at the Karolyis ranch in Houston, is the second such gymnast to pull out for the Americans. Olympic all-around champ Nastia Liukin withdrew a couple of weeks ago, citing a lack of training for her reason.

-B. Cox

By Myles Edwards                   

The IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations) claims to encourage fair play and equality.  Therefore, it is somewhat strange that it has given one verdict to two contrasting individuals, both striving for athletic glory and both going ‘the extra mile’ in very different ways.  Two cases which, according to the IAAF, have a supposedly similar issue at their core – performance enhancement.

Oscar Pistorius and Dwain Chambers are both banned, by the IAAF, from able-bodied Olympic competition.

Oscar Pistorius is the double amputee world record holder for the 100, 200 and 400 meters.  Aged 11 months, Oscar’s legs were amputated halfway between his knees and ankles.  He now runs with carbon fibre, artificial limbs.  It is these limbs which have caused controversy in the world of athletics as a result of the IAAF’s claim that they give Oscar ‘unfair advantage’ over able-bodied athletes.

Dwain Chambers burst onto the athletics scene with immense promise in 1995.  Following a successful 3 year spell as a junior, Chambers failed to fulfill his early promise and in August, 2003 he tested positive for the banned anabolic steroid, Tetrahydrogestrinone.  Chambers was stripped of medals and prize money backdating to 2002.  As a result of Chambers’ offence, Christian Malcolm, Marlon Devonish and Darren Campbell were stripped of their gold 4×100m relay medals from the 2002 European Championships.  Since then Chambers has won silver in the World indoor 100 metres, failed to make it at as an American footballer and is now playing for Castleford Tigers in rugby league.

While the stories of Pistorius and Chambers differ in many ways, there is a parallel issue at the heart of both.  The matter of honesty is where these two stories collide, with such disparity.  Oscar Pistorius has aided the IAAF with their inquiries at every opportunity.  Oscar Pistorius is hiding nothing, he is not cheating and his honesty affects no one adversely.   Chambers was caught cheating and therefore admitted his wrongdoings.  His conduct and so-called honesty not only puts the integrity of the sport into jeopardy but resulted in three worthy athletes being stripped of their World silver medals.

On one occasion when Oscar was a child, two older boys pushed him back and forth until he fell over.  In true Oscar-fashion, he bought a punch bag.  Not long after, the same two boys targeted Oscar again, only for Oscar to get even.  He retaliated and kicked one of the boys in the chin with his prosthetic leg, the boy fell to the floor, weeping, and Oscar was not bothered again.  When faced with adversity – Oscar picks himself up, Chambers cheats, with a ‘pick-me-up’. 

Oscar Pistorius

Pistorius currently awaits the result of his appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport against his Olympic ban.  The IAAF claims that Pistorius gains an unfair advantage through use of his prosthetic limbs and in early 2007 (around the time Pistorius was reaching the peak of his career so far) they introduced Rule 144.2 prohibiting:

‘The use of any technical device…that provides the user with an advantage over another athlete not using such a device.’

Oscar Pistorius has enough obstacles in the way of his destiny without this discriminatory intervention from the IAAF.  Of course this rule was tailor made to halt Oscar Pistorius, unless the IAAF had got wind that Britain’s failing sprinters were planning on utilising jet packs in competition.  Sarcasm aside, Oscar recalls one astonishing response from the IAAF:

“The IAAF said that they want competition to be between humans and not manufacturers.  They also said that if they didn’t ban technical aids then what is to stop athletes using roller blades or bicycles and they may as well allow athletes to compete with a jet pack on their back.”

It is clear that the IAAF have a fight on their hands.  Oscar’s father, Henke, can take a great deal of credit for his son’s resilient attitude:

“My brother, sister and I learnt from a young age not to include the words ‘I can’t’ in our vocabulary.  Our father always taught us that if you want to do something and you put your mind to it – you’ll get it done.”

Pistorius is unique, a one-off and therefore must be treated as an individual:

“In fourteen years of prosthetic limbs, no one has come close to the standard of able-bodies athletes.  I am 0.8 seconds away from qualifying form the South African Olympic team.”

“I don’t think a lot of people realise how hard you have to train to be a professional athlete.  With continual emphasises on the prosthetic limbs, it takes credit away from my hard training and ability as an athlete.  It’s basically saying that you can cut off any guy’s legs, give him these limbs and he’s going run awesome times.  You get out of them what you put in.”

The carbon fibre blades, which have earned Oscar the nickname of ‘Bladerunner’, are not new and they are not unfair.  Whilst not claiming to more than the scientific tests being carried out by the IAFF on Oscar’s limbs, common sense must prevail, whatever the result.  Banning Oscar from Olympic competition is sending the wrong message out to every human, disabled or not.

Dwain Chambers and Oscar Pistorius had/have the same goal – they just chose a different means of achieving it.  No matter what Chambers achieves, he will always be seen as a cheat.  Whatever Oscar’s achievements, he will be seen as an inspiration and a role model.

Pistorius is simply making the most out of a situation where most people would have given up long ago.  All he wants to do is compete at the highest level which is physically possible for him, why should any honest human being be denied that chance?  Subconsciously, Oscar Pistorius represents hope and determination. 

“My job is not to go and win every persons heart over about prosthetic limbs, my job is to be a professional athlete and run, at the end of the day.”

Oscar’s motto of ‘you get out what you put in’ would slot perfectly into an ideal society where justice and common sense prevail.  However, with supposedly sensible yet seemingly silly villains at the head of bodies, such as the IAAF, it shouldn’t be a surprise if we find out about doped up athletes having competed for Olympic glory in Beijing, when the honest and indomitable Oscar Pistorius was left at home.  He defines the word ‘inspiration’ and for his appeal to fail would contradict every value at the core of athletics.

 “You’re not disabled by the disabilities you have, you are able by the abilities you have.”