Runners Furious Over Caster Semenya's Return

Complain of 'literally running against a man'
By Jane Yager,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 23, 2010 5:58 AM CDT
Runners Furious Over Caster Semenya's Return
Caster Semenya, center, of South Africa runs to win the Women's 800 meters during the ISTAF Athletics Meeting in Berlin, Sunday, Aug. 22, 2010.   (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Though she's only been training seriously for a month, Caster Semenya sailed to victory in the 800m yesterday in Berlin, prompting resentment among her female competitors. "Even if she is a female, she's on the very fringe of the normal athlete female biological composition from what I understand of hormone testing," said Canadian Diane Cummins, who finished eighth. "So, from that perspective, most of us just feel that we are literally running against a man."

Cummins was one of several of the world's top women runners who griped that when Semenya reaches her peak performance, none of them will stand a chance against her. "There are guys who can challenge Usain Bolt but nobody can challenge Caster Semenya," Cummins told the Telegraph. "She is four or five seconds better than any of us and that's incredible." (More Caster Semenya stories.)

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