Wycombe Fox Posted 19 August 2009 Posted 19 August 2009 South African distance runner Caster Semenya will run in tonight's women's 800-meter final at the World Track and Field Championships in Berlin, despite concerns that she's a dude pulling a reverse Yentl on the world. Earlier, two Australian newspapers reported that the 18-year-old Semenya — who owns the year's fastest 800 and whose "physique and powerful style have sparked speculation in recent months that she may not be entirely female," whatever that means — could be disqualified, pending the results of a series of physical checks. An IAAF spokesman later said there was no evidence of foul play and that the governing body hadn't conducted any tests, though everyone seems to think the IAAF will eventually screen her anyway. This sort of thing has happened before. For now, it's all just a bizarre, Aussie-propagated rumor that Semenya and her handlers have been forced to parry in wincingly awkward fashion: [Coach Michael Seme] added that when they stopped at a petrol station in Cape Town recently and Semenya entered the female toilets, the petrol attendants prevented her from doing so because they were convinced she was a man. "Caster just laughed and asked if they would like her to take off her pants to show them she was a woman," said Seme. The coach said he found it funny, but he doesn't have any problems with it because he is 100% certain that Semenya is a woman. "People probably have the right to ask such questions if they are in doubt. But I can give you the telephone numbers of her room-mates in Berlin. They have already seen her naked in the showers and she has nothing to hide," Seme explained. According to the media liaison of Athletics South Africa (ASA), Ethel Manyaka, ASA would not send an athlete to the World Championships if they were not certain about the participant's gender. "President of ASA, Leonard Cheuene, knows something like that will create a huge controversy. How are we going to do it besides asking her to show us her private parts?" quipped Manyaka. Alas, it's not so simple, the smart fellows at Science of Sport inform us: [E]ven genetic testing cannot confirm male or female. In fact, it is so complex that to do proper gender testing, you have to take a multi-disciplinary approach, and make use of internal medicine specialists, gynecologists, psychologists, geneticists and endocrinologists. I am afraid that dropping your pants is not proof at all. Which means that for the remainder of her career, Caster Semenya will have the world eyeing her crotch, and that track will enter the second decade of the 21st century behaving like some bad '80s movie.
Heart-Shaped Fox Posted 19 August 2009 Posted 19 August 2009 What time is the race on? I need to have look at this 'person'. There must be something dodgy if people at first think she is a man.
Wycombe Fox Posted 19 August 2009 Author Posted 19 August 2009 What time is the race on? 8.35 tonight.
Heart-Shaped Fox Posted 19 August 2009 Posted 19 August 2009 8.35 tonight. Cheers. Look forward to it!
purpleronnie Posted 19 August 2009 Posted 19 August 2009 I saw a replay of the heats and didnt know about this story and the first thing I thought and I'm sure I'm not alone was 'she looks very manly' I never thought for one second though that she actually could be.
Heart-Shaped Fox Posted 19 August 2009 Posted 19 August 2009 They're all saying its suspicious as no one has ever come 2 secs ahead of the others before. Very, very suspicious. But well done to the English lass.
Uncle Ben Posted 19 August 2009 Posted 19 August 2009 Why would anyone even want to do this? Live their whole life as an ugly wench just to be the female forest gump.
AjcW Posted 19 August 2009 Posted 19 August 2009 He's got a big fuck off adams apple, why is this even being disputed , the iaaf really are thick as shit.
Fox You Forest Posted 19 August 2009 Posted 19 August 2009 Looks like ladyboy wasn't at full pelt either, he/she could have gone up a few gears. Very suspect.
SOCCERROO FOX Posted 20 August 2009 Posted 20 August 2009 "Visual test's by officials were inconslusive" It's a dude
Babylon Posted 20 August 2009 Posted 20 August 2009 I didn't know about all the controversy before the race, when I watched it I was convinced it was a bloke. There wasn't the anything that resembled female features about. Turn it around and I bet there is a slong hanging out the back. http://wwwimage.cbsnews.com/images/2009/08...mage5252337.jpg
Benji Posted 20 August 2009 Posted 20 August 2009 If she didn't have anything to hide surely you'd just go in a room with 2 officials, show your axe wound, take the gold medal and stick 2 fingers up to the committee?
dandannieldanok Posted 20 August 2009 Posted 20 August 2009 If she didn't have anything to hide surely you'd just go in a room with 2 officials, show your axe wound, take the gold medal and stick 2 fingers up to the committee? Yer I thought that too, although I've never heard it put like that before; axe wound ! Jenny Meadows Did very very well.
stez Posted 20 August 2009 Posted 20 August 2009 apparenty it's not a simple thing to prove if she's a geezer or not
Unit Posted 20 August 2009 Posted 20 August 2009 apparenty it's not a simple thing to prove if she's a geezer or not i heard that it might be because s/he's a hermaphrodite and i imagine you'd be pretty self concious if you were one
Benji Posted 20 August 2009 Posted 20 August 2009 i heard that it might be because s/he's a hermaphrodite and i imagine you'd be pretty self concious if you were one imagine if that were true i can't imagine the athletics committee have made provisions for it!
stez Posted 20 August 2009 Posted 20 August 2009 i heard that it might be because s/he's a hermaphrodite and i imagine you'd be pretty self concious if you were one on the radio earlier they were saying something about she could still have the male chromosome (sp) but still, technically, be a woman. i'm not sure how, as i was only half listening to it.
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.