"Caster Semenya Ruling Uses An Unscientific Definition of Who Is Female, Critics Say" – Ariana Eunjung Cha

In ruling against Olympic gold medalist Caster Semenya, the highest court in international sports effectively imposed an exacting definition of who should be considered male or female based on a single factor — testosterone levels. Caster Semenya — a South African national who is one of the world’s fastest female runners — is believed to have hyperandrogenism in which the body naturally produces levels of hormones that are more typical of men. Joshua Safer, MD, executive director of the Center for Transgender Medicine and Surgery at Mount Sinai and senior faculty of medicine, endocrinology, diabetes and bone disease at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai said he’s concerned about ordering an athlete such as Caster Semenya to reduce levels of naturally occurring testosterone when other athletes are not required to give up other natural advantages such as larger muscles.

“My fear is, if we’re dealing with naturally occurring differences, where do you draw the line? Are we drawing the line with Caster Semenya because we’re pretty sure we know where her advantage is?”

— Joshua Safer, MD, Executive Director, Center for Transgender Medicine and Surgery at Mount Sinai, Senior Faculty, Medicine, Endocrinology, Diabetes and Bone Disease, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Learn more