JOIN USCAS relief for Dutee, jolt for IAAF
Young woman sprinter Dutee Chand has probably won the toughest race of her life. Fighting an indefinite suspension after failing a hormone test last year, the 19-year-old has found relief from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
In its interim verdict, the Lausanne-based CAS, the highest court for sporting matters, suspended “the International Association of Athletics Federation’s Regulations Governing Eligibility of Females with Hyperandrogenism to Compete in Women’s Competition” for a maximum period of two years.
The regulations had barred Dutee and other women athletes having excessive levels of male hormones (hyperandrogenism) from competing. While those regulations are suspended, Dutee is permitted to compete in both national and international level athletics events. The IAAF, the governing body of world athletics, has been given two years to prove that women suffering from hyperandrogenism derive advantages from it. Otherwise, the regulations will be declared void.
Dutee had to miss the 2014 World Junior Championships and possibly the 2014 Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games after failing the test which revealed that the natural levels of testosterone produced by her body were above limits set in the IAAF guidelines.
She, however, refused to undergo surgery that could have made her eligible to compete. Instead, in a first of its kind, she chose to appeal against the IAAF and the Athletics Federation of India rules on hyperandrogenism, which the world body had introduced in 2011 in the wake of the Caster Semenya issue in 2009.
In her fight, she found an unexpected ally in the Sports Authority of India, which led by the then Director General Jiji Thomson, pledged to support her, calling such medical intervention “unethical, unscientific and harmful” to an athlete in the long run. Dutee was allowed to run domestically at first and after the hearing concluded, she received permission to take part in the Asian Championships, where she competed in the 4x100M relay.
“We are happy with the verdict, it is a path-breaking development towards justice. Our efforts have borne fruit, our endurance also has paid. We wish Dutee all the best,” said current SAI DG Injeti Srinivas.
Dr Payoshni Mitra, an expert in gender issues in sport, who was appointed to advise Dutee, was equally ecstatic. “It has been wonderful to have this verdict. It has been a tough journey. We are very happy,” she said.
The CAS Panel in charge of the procedure -- Justice Annabelle Claire Bennett AO, Australia (President), Prof Richard H McLaren, Canada, and Dr Hans Nater, Switzerland — found that it could not uphold the validity of IAAF rules as they did not establish a correlation between enhanced testosterone levels and improved athletic performance in hyperandrogenic female athletes.
“The panel concludes that the IAAF has not discharged its onus of establishing that the Hyperandrogenism Regulations are necessary and proportionate to pursue the legitimate objective of organising competitive female athletics to ensure fairness in athletic competition.
“Specifically, the IAAF has not provided sufficient scientific evidence about the quantitative relationship between enhanced testosterone levels and improved athletic performance in hyperandrogenic athletes.
“In the absence of such evidence, the Panel is unable to conclude that hyperandrogenic female athletes may enjoy such a significant performance advantage that it is necessary to exclude them from competing in the female category,” the order read.
“In these circumstances, the panel is unable to uphold the validity of the Regulations.”
The two-year period, however is the opportunity for the IAAF to provide the CAS with scientific evidence about the quantitative relationship between enhanced testosterone levels and improved athletic performance in hyperandrogenic athletes.
“In the event that the IAAF submits such evidence, the Panel will issue further directions enabling the Athlete to respond to that evidence and listing the matter for a further hearing for the Panel to consider whether that evidence is sufficient to establish the validity of the Regulations. In the event that the IAAF does not file any evidence within that two-year window (or if it notifies the CAS in writing that it does not intend to file such evidence) then the Hyperandrogenism Regulations shall be declared void.”
Till then Dutee can let herself fly in the joy of competing and winning.