• Athletics

Semenya return may prompt boycott

ESPN staff
May 19, 2010
Jenny Meadows is the British indoor record holder for the 800 metres © Getty Images
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Several of the world's top athletes have refused to compete in the same field as Caster Semenya, according to Jenny Meadows.

South Africa's Semenya has not competed since a gender verification case was launched following her success in the 800 metres at the World Championships in Berlin last August.

She has targeted June 24 for a return to action, which is not prohibited by the athletics governing body IAAF - but she may not be joined on the start line by several competitors.

"If I'm on the start line and she is in the race, I would just get on with it," Meadows said to the Times. "But others have said they won't run. You have to trust the IAAF to take the decision out of the athletes' hands. I can't believe it's still going on after nine months."

Meadows finished two places behind Semenya in Berlin - a triumph that she credits as a turning point in her career. Since the World Championships she has broken Dame Kelly Holmes' British indoor record for the 800m.

"Before Berlin I was always someone who did well in training and, when it came to competition, wouldn't concentrate on myself," Meadows said. "I'd look sidewards and think the other girls were in such good shape.

"I had almost cemented my status as someone who got to the semis and that was great, but I overcame that barrier when I got to the final in Berlin and thought, 'Forget the old Jen, I don't want to go back to the old psyche.'"

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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