Double Olympic champion Caster Semenya will run her last 800m at 7.07pm on Friday before the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) imposes new hugely controversial rules limiting the testosterone levels in female athletes.
Semenya, who has spent years trying to get the new IAAF regulations thrown out, will compete at the Diamond League meeting in Doha against 2016 Olympic silver medallist Francine Niyonsaba - who recently revealed she had similar difference in sexual development (DSD) characteristics to the South African.
Both must then begin taking medication to lower their testosterone levels if they wish to compete over that distance based on the new rules.
The case is likely to have far-reaching consequences for women’s sport, and has split global opinion.
Athletics South Africa likened the new IAAF regulations to apartheid, and both it and Semenya’s lawyers have said they could contest the CAS ruling dismissing her appeal against their introduction.
Under the rules to take effect on May 8, female athletes with high natural levels of testosterone wishing to compete in events from 400m to a mile must medically limit that level to under 5 nmol/L, which is double the normal female range of below 2 nmol/L.
Barring further legal action, that leaves Semenya at a crossroads: either she submits to the rules or looks to compete in longer distances.
This potential lifeline means Semenya may not abandon the 800m yet, though any advance to the Swiss Federal Tribunal could take months to reach a verdict and leave her career in limbo.
The 28-year-old Semenya says of the ruling: “I know that the IAAF’s regulations have always targeted me specifically. For a decade the IAAF has tried to slow me down, but this has actually made me stronger.
“The decision of the CAS will not hold me back.
“I will once again rise above and continue to inspire young women and athletes in South Africa and around the world.”
Semenya’s personal best of 1:54.25 will make her the quickest in the field in Doha’s Diamond League meet, the first time - and possibly the last - she will compete over the distance in 2019.
Reuters