Author: Michelle Abraham

The European Court of Human Rights ruled the South African 800m gold medallist had been discriminated against.

Semenya, 32, was born with a medical condition known as hyperandrogenism which means the body has higher than usual levels of testosterone. She has not been allowed to compete in any track events such as the Olympics and World Championships without taking testosterone-reducing drugs since 2018. Semenya has twiced failed in legal battles to overturn the decision.

In a lengthy judgement published on Tuesday, 11 July, the The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) stated the Swiss government did not protect Semenya from being discriminated against when its Supreme Court refused to overturn a decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas), which upheld the World Athletics rules.

Cas has previously ruled that testosterone rules for athletes such as Semenya, were discriminatory, but that the discrimination was "necessary, reasonable and proportionate" to protect "the integrity of female athletics".

Although the ruling is a positive step for Semenya, it has only opened a way that the Swiss supreme court may reconsider its decision.