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Controversial runner may be man and woman
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Caster Semenya
South African runner Caster Semenya has been surrounded by controversy since British and Australian newspapers began running stories last month claiming that she was a he. After Semenya won the women's 800-meter race at the World Championships in August, she was ordered to take an extensive gender test. The results are now in and various sources are claiming that Semenya is intersexed.
The Associated Press and other news outlets are reporting that Semenya has no uterus or ovaries and that she has internal testes, male sex organs that produce testosterone. As a result, Semenya's testosterone levels were three times higher than most females.
The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), which ordered the gender testing, is not commenting on the results yet. They were not scheduled to release the test results officially until November, but the results were leaked.
It is unclear what these results will mean to Semenya's career in track and field. She could be stripped of the gold medal she won at the World Championships and could be barred from competing in the women's field of other events. It does, however, raise a difficult point since it appears that Semenya was born this way and cannot be categorized as specifically male or female.
"God made me the way I am and I accept myself. I am who I am and I'm proud of myself," Semenya recently told You Magazine.
Currently, Semenya has pulled out of upcoming races and is staying out of the spotlight while she awaits a verdict on her future from the IAAF.
Caster Semenya is a man and a woman
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