Semenya test results coming in 2 weeks
LONDON -- The results of Caster Semenya's gender tests are expected to arrive at the IAAF headquarters any day, and it's unlikely the world 800-meter champion will lose her gold medal.
IAAF spokesman Nick Davies told The Associated Press on Tuesday that it would take about two weeks for a group of medics and anti-doping experts at track and field's international governing body to analyze the results.
"We will get the results any day now of the Berlin investigation, then they need to be checked -- it's not something where you have a yes or a no," Davies said.
Speculation about South African's gender was sparked by stunning improvements in times coupled with her muscular build and deep voice. She easily won the 800 at the world championships last month in Berlin.
The tests are to determine if the 18-year-old has a medical condition that blurs her gender and gives her an unfair advantage. The definitive outcome will be determined within about two weeks after test results arrive in Monaco.
"Only then, with conclusive evidence, would we be in a position to make an educated decision based on that evidence," Davies said. "My information is that it will take between eight days and two weeks to be in a position to speak to Semenya and decide where to go."
The process required a physical medical evaluation and includes reports from a gynecologist, endocrinologist, psychologist, internal medicine specialist and gender expert.
IAAF general secretary Pierre Weiss had said in Berlin that Semenya would be stripped of her gold medal if tests showed she wasn't a woman.
But Davies indicated that Semenya is likely to keep the gold medal she won in 1 minute, 55.45 seconds in Berlin, 2.45 seconds ahead of her closest competitor.
"There is no automatic disqualification of results in a case like this," Davies said. "This is not a doping case at present, so it shouldn't be considered as one where you have a retroactive stripping of results."
South Africa track coach Wilfred Daniels resigned this week, saying he failed Semenya by not telling her she was being subjected to tests in July to determine her sex.
Gender testing used to be mandatory for female athletes at the Olympics, but the screenings were dropped in 1999. One reason for the change was not all women have standard female chromosomes. There are also cases of people who have ambiguous genitalia or other congenital conditions.
The most common cause of sexual ambiguity is congenital adrenal hyperplasia, an endocrine disorder where the adrenal glands produce abnormally high levels of hormones.
Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press
