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The International Association of Athletics Federations has agreed to delay the implementation of its eligibility regulations for the female classification from November to March.
This was done to avoid a delay in the proceedings brought by Mokgadi Caster Semenya and Athletics South Africa challenging their legality.
The IAAF was trying to dictate changes of “natural occurrence” in a person by forcing runners to use medication to alter their hormone levels. It announced in April that it would implement a policy requiring women athletes with higher-than-normal levels of testosterone to take medication or undergo surgery to reduce this.
Today, the federation said that it had shifted its deadline because a contested application to stay the implementation of the differences of sex development regulations would have caused additional delay and created new uncertainty for athletes seeking to compete in the women’s category.
The regulations, which require athletes with differences of sex development to maintain their serum testosterone levels below 5 nmol/L for at least six months prior to competing in Restricted Events (races over distances from 400m to one mile, inclusive) in international competitions, were due to be implemented on November 1.
Although the association said it remained confident of the legal, scientific, and ethical bases for the regulations, and expected the court of arbitration for sport to reject these challenges, it understood that all affected athletes needed certainty on the point as soon as possible.
“Therefore, in exchange for Ms Semenya and Athletics South Africa agreeing to an expedited timetable, the IAAF has agreed not to enforce the regulations against any athlete unless and until they are upheld in the court of arbitration.”
This ruling was expected by March 26 2019.
“Prolonging the uncertainty for athletes looking to compete in these distances next year and beyond is unfair and so we have reached a compromise with the claimants. We have agreed not to enforce the regulations against any athlete until the contested regulations are upheld. In exchange, they have agreed not to prolong the process. All athletes need this situation resolved as soon as possible,” said IAAF president Sebastian Coe.
In a notification sent to all IAAF Member Federations today, the association’s health and science department director, Stéphane Bermon, said: “We recognise that this five-month shift in the timetable from a November to a late March start date could result in affected athletes having to sit out the bulk of the outdoor season leading up to the IAAF World Championships, including international competitions such as the Diamond League which begin in May 2019. The original November 1 start date was designed specifically to avoid this.”
It is expected that the hearing will take place in February with a decision at the end of March. Any other information in relation to proceedings will come from the arbitration court.
In April this year, Minister of Sports and Recreation Tokozile Xasa called the IAAF’s new policy on women athletes’ testosterone levels “sexist and racist”.
“We take it as very sexist, very racial and homophobic. We are angry and we want South Africa and everybody in Africa to rally behind us.”
The world 800m champion, Semenya was initially subjected to gender testing in 2009.
Parliament’s portfolio committee on sport said it was appalled by the rules, which would have a direct bearing on Semenya.
Committee chairperson Beauty Dlulane said: “This is heavy-handedness on the part of the IAAF and a plan to suspend Caster. This should be challenged. Policies and regulations should not be made as we go along, merely to kill competition.”
