Over the years, one thing has become apparent, Sha’Carri Richardson will always stand up for everything she believes in. And she will do it unabashedly. The track and field star has been a constant spotlight stealer with her witty quips and her courageous stands. Her support of Caster Semenya, a South African track and field athlete who is currently shrouded in controversy, is yet another example of Richardson standing up for what she believes in.

The debate surrounding Semenya, and a few other athletes, is about hyperandrogenism in the world of track and field. There has been a contention to fix an upper limit of testosterone that an athlete can have if they want to compete in the ‘women’s’ category. Caster Semenya appealed against this new rule and recently received a favorable ruling from the European Court of Human Rights. This decision has been celebrated by Sha’Carri Richardson on her social media.

Sha’Carri Richardson and her stand on current events

After hearing the news that Caster Semenya won the appeal and got a positive verdict, Richardson expressed her support for the cause and the athlete. While sharing the news on her official Twitter handle, the recent USATF 2023 100m winner wrote, “Just the beginning of a change that’s needed!!!” The famous athlete also shared the news on her Instagram stories, and while tagging Caster Semenya, she wrote, “Always stand on what you believe even if they don’t”. The controversy began when World Athletics wished to cap the amount of testosterone one can possess while participating in the ‘women’s’ category.

According to reports, Caster Semenya was identified as a female at birth and has continued to confirm to that gender identity. However, due to naturally having testosterone exceeding the permissible limits according to the new rule that came in 2019, she had to artificially reduce the testosterone in her body by taking external supplements. On the other hand, World Athletics claims that the naturally high level of testosterone gives an unfair advantage over other women, which is their reason to regularize it. Semenya appealed against these rules in the Court of Arbitration for Sport in 2019, the highest court of sports, and lost the verdict.

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Post that, she appealed to the Switzerland Supreme Court in 2020, and lost yet again. Now, after appealing to the European Court of Human Rights, which presides over the European Union, Semenya finally got a positive response. The verdict of the court, as shared by Caster Semenya on her social media, reads, “The European Court of Human Rights ruled this morning that I was discriminated against, that my human rights were violated and that there are “serious questions about the validity of the rules set out by World Athletics.” In light of these events, it is important to understand the effect of these rules.

Will Semenya and others affected be able to participate?

Caster Semenya was the 800m champion at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics. However, she could not defend her title at the Tokyo Olympics as the new regulations sidelined her from the events. Either she had to artificially reduce her testosterone levels, which she refused to. Or, she had to forgo the event altogether, which she did. Since then, she has been fighting the legal war, and this new development in her favor might change the landscape.

However, it’s unclear when and how that will take place. While the ECHR gave due recognition to the ill-effect the rules were having on Semenya’s profession, the stakeholders have still not given any comment on when they will roll back the said rules, or if they will do it at all. The ECHR ordered the Swiss government to pay Semenya $66,000 as restitution for legal expenses borne by her. Caster wishes to run in the Paris Olympics that are fast approaching, but with the rules still in effect, only time will tell if that will be possible or not.

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