Filed under: Women's Sports
The world was anticipating the comeback of South African runner Caster Semenya, the female runner whose gender was questioned last year, after she blew away the competition in an 800-meter race.
Semenya was suspended for almost a year while international athletic organizations investigated the claim. Luckily, Semenya was cleared to compete again this summer but hasn't been too impressive, because she has to catch up with her training.
In her fifth race since being reinstated this week, Semenya had her worst performance yet. She finished 9th in the 800-meter race at the Palio della Quercia meet in northern Italy. According to the Associated Press, it looked like she was just out for a jog and not really making any moves for the lead.
"I ran the race, I ran slow. Nothing happened. It's part of the game," Semenya told the Associated Press. "Sometimes you need to go according to your body."
Italian runner Elisa Cusma Piccione of Italy won the race, but made headlines last year when she said Semenya was a man, after losing to her at the World Championships. Semenya didn't seem to hold any grudges as she went and congratulated Piccione on her win.
"Maybe I used words that were a bit crude, but I wasn't the only one to use those words if you look at what's being said now," Piccione told the Associated Press afterward. "Maybe it was a bit excessive to have said that right away because you can never judge these things. But if she didn't compete for nearly a year maybe there was something to that."
In the meantime, Semenya will continue to train with hopes of making an impact on her next race.