Semenya and ASA reveal their expert cards
Tit-for-tat as the 28-year-old's legal representatives follow the example of the IAAF, who announced their list on Monday.
South African 800 meters Olympic champion Caster Semenya arrives for a landmark hearing at the Court of Arbitration (CAS) in Lausanne on February 18, 2019. – Semenya will challenge a proposed rule by the International Athletics Federation (IAAF) aiming to restrict testosterone levels in female runners. (Photo by Harold CUNNINGHAM / AFP)
The legal teams continued to trade mini-blows on Tuesday, on the sidelines of a hearing into international gender rules at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne.
Athletics South Africa (ASA) and lawyers representing Olympic 800m champion Caster Semenya unveiled a total of 19 experts who would assist them in pleading their cases, as they hit back at a controversial move by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).
Among the 10 experts who would be introduced by Semenya’s lawyers at this week’s CAS hearing included Veronica Gomez-Lobo, a professor of obstetrics and gynaecology; Lih-Mei Liao, a clinical and health psychologist; Dankmar Bohning, a professor of medical statistics; Payoshni Mitra, an advocate with a decade of experience working with athletes with hyperandrogenism; and Richard Holt, a professor of diabetes and endocrinology.
The nine experts to be used by ASA included Wayne Derman, a professor of sports medicine; Carl Lombard, a biostatistician; Mark Engel, a professor of medicine; Marc Blockman, a clinical pharmacologist; and Joel Dave, a professor of endocrinology.
“While the apparent main target of the regulations, Caster Semenya, is represented in her personal capacity by her own team of experts, ASA has taken up the challenge on behalf of all affected female athletes worldwide, both current and in future as we believe that the regulations predominantly target African athletes,” ASA said.
On Monday, the IAAF had released its own list of experts, with ASA lashing out in response and accusing the global body of employing underhand tactics by violating a confidentiality agreement.
All parties had subsequently been cleared by the court to issue similar statements, revealing the experts who would assist them in their appeals to the CAS panel.
Semenya and ASA were challenging the IAAF’s new rules, which restricted athletes with hyperandrogenism from competing against women at international level in certain events.
The five-day CAS hearing, which was being held behind closed doors, is expected to conclude on Friday.
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