South African sprinter Caster Semenya “has every right to be here” at the World Championships in Eugene, IAAF President Sebastian Coe said Tuesday.

Forced to move from her favorite distance to the longest race due to sexual conformity rules that require her to take testosterone-lowering drugs to race distances ranging from 400 meters to a mile.

The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) bans athletes with high testosterone levels from racing over 400 meters to a mile because the hormone increases muscle mass and oxygen consumption.

Semenya made several unsuccessful legal attempts to reverse the decision. Attempting to compete in the Tokyo Olympics last summer, she attempted to qualify in the 200m but failed to qualify.

“She has a right to be here,” Ko said of Semenya, who initially failed to qualify when she finished sixth at last month’s African Championships in Mauritius but benefited from the withdrawal of several runners. and the same services as any athlete who is here legally, and they are.

But Coe, who won two golds in the 1500m at the 1980 and 1984 Olympics, stressed that the gender rules won’t change anytime soon.

“We have always been guided by science, and the science is crystal clear: we know that testosterone is a critical factor in performance,” he told news outlets.

“I’m really tired of arguing with second-rate sociologists trying to raise issues with me or the scientific community. No problem, testosterone is the key to performance,” he added.

“His responsibility is to protect the integrity of women’s sport,” Coe explained. “There are two categories in our sport, one is age and the other is gender. Age, because we think it’s best for Olympic champions not to compete from 14 -year-old… seniors in community and gender sports, because if there is no separation between both sexes, no other sporting event will ever be won by a woman.

“The current limits for running from 400m to a mile were not set in stone slabs. If we find that there is an effect in other races, we will have to take that into account,” he said, adding that “it is not about a person, it is not about a country or a continent.

When asked if expansion of restrictions was possible, he replied: “I would not speculate, because I will be guided by science. Only when we really understand the impact beyond the limited list will it be on the table.”