IAAF to abide by CAS decision on new gender rule

London, June 27: The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) President Lord Sebastian Coe has reiterated the sport's global governing body's decision to stick with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) over the new controversial gender rule.

The athletics governing body ruled in April

Two-time Olympic gold medallist Caster Semenya challenged the rule, the South African appealing to CAS, with a decision still to be made.

Although the IAAF responded at the time, "ready to defend the new regulations", a second statement now says that CAS' "final decision will be respected" after a meeting with Athletics South Africa (ASA).

Coe reiterates reasons for new eligibility regulations for female classifications (DSD) in meeting with Athletics South Africa President: https://t.co/cQuLbvjW6d

— IAAF (@iaaforg) June 27, 2018

In the same release, Coe, England's Olympic middle-distance runner, sought to reiterate the reasoning behind a ruling that would affect athletes with differences of sexual development (DSD).

He said: "We need to create competition categories within our sport that ensures that success is determined by talent, dedication and hard work, rather than by other factors that are not considered fair or meaningful, such as the enormous physical advantages that an adult has over a child, or a male athlete has over a female athlete.

"We therefore need to come up with a fair solution for intersex/DSD athletes wishing to compete in the female category.

"[This] is what the new regulations set out to do, based on the evidence the IAAF has gathered about the degree of performance benefit that such intersex/DSD athletes get from their higher levels of circulating testosterone."

Meanwhile, ASA head Aleck Skhosana has told the IAAF he would have liked more consultation before track and field's world body introduced controversial new rule.

"While we have been talking to the IAAF since May 10, 2018, we would have preferred more consultation in the development of these regulations," Skhosana, was quoted as saying in British media, after a meeting with Coe in London.

"We will support our athletes on the grounds that the regulations discriminate against certain female athletes on the basis of natural physical characteristics and/or sex," he added.

After the meeting, Coe and Skhosana said the CAS decision on Semenya's challenge would be respected by both organisations.

(With inputs from IAAF and Agencies).