POSTED: August 20th 2009

NewsUpdate

Semenya takes IAAF gold in Berlin - but also a gender test

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT / Sports Features Communications

BERLIN: Uncertainty has clouded the women’s 800m at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin after officials ordered a gender verification test on winner Caster Semenya.

The South African 18-year-old had won the final on Wednesday night in 1min 55.45sec. It was the year's fastest time and her personal best by more than a second.

Speculation about Semenya had increased after she ran a year’s best 1:56.72 in mid-July. However, South Africa athletics manager said: “She is a female. We are completely sure about that. We would not have entered her into the female competition if we had any doubts."

Kenyan world champion and Olympic silver medallist Janeth Jepkosgei was more than 15 metres adrift for second in 1:57.90 with Jenny Meadows of Britain third. Meadows's time of 1:57.93 made her the third fastest British athlete of all time behind double Olympic champion Kelly Holmes and Kirsty Wade.

Earlier Nick Davies, on behalf of the International Association of Athetics Federations (IAAF), had clarified that Semenya was being permitted to run while the test process was under way. Semenya was steered away from the usual post-race news conference.

Meadows, asked about the Semenya issue, said: “It's up to the IAAF to sort it out. You can't do anything about who is out there. There are just eight people on the track and you just have to make sure you're in the first three to get a medal."

Keywords · Caster Semenya · IAAF · World Athletics Championships · Berlin · Meadows

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