JOHANNESBURG - Caster Semenya's right to a fair hearing was violated by the Swiss Federal Supreme Court when she lost a 2023 appeal against World Athletics regulations that effectively barred her from competing, Europe's top court has ruled.
The double 800m Olympic champion won a partial victory at the European Court of Human Rights in her long legal battle over athletics' sex eligibility rules.
- Dr Ross Tucker, a sports scientist discussed the issue with eNCA.
Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie welcomed the judgment by the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), which upheld a 2023 ruling by the ECHR’s lower chamber that Caster Mokgadi Semenya was denied a fair and effective hearing by the Swiss Federal Tribunal regarding the long-running controversy around her right to participate in professional athletics.
Athletics South Africa says they welcome the favourable decision by the European Human Rights Cour on the Caster Semenya ruling, but it is unfortunate that the ECHR did not pronounce on the validity of the regulations in which the whole case started.
Athletics South Africa further said, they laments the fact that the judgment may not be accepted by World Athletics who are expected to continue implementing the DSD regulations, but ASA maintains that it will welcome the reform of the Court of Arbitration for Sport to embrace human rights principles.
Meanwhile the Portfolio Committee on Sports, Arts and Culture Chairperson, Mr Joe McGluwa, has apologised Caster Semenya for the treatment she has received at the hands of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), which has sought to unfairly criminalise her sporting ability.
Sports Portfolio Committee chairpeson Joe McGluwa discussed this with eNCA.