ATHLETICS:SOUTH AFRICA'S top athletics official is fighting for his political life after admitting that he lied over gender tests on the runner Caster Semenya.
The South African government has called for Leonard Chuene to resign as president of Athletics South Africa, and the ruling African National Congress described ASA’s handling of the affair as “disgusting”. But the beleaguered official remained defiant, insisting that he would not “jump ship”.
A leaked email exchange last week forced Chuene to admit that he knew that Semenya, the women’s 800 metre champion, had undergone a gender test prior to the world championships, something he had always publicly denied. He claimed he kept the information secret to safeguard the 18-year-old’s privacy.
Gert Oosthuizen, South Africa’s deputy sports minister, expressed frustration that even the government had been kept in the dark, and demanded that Chuene quit.
“Mr Chuene has not only lied to us at the ministry, but to the whole country, and this is not acceptable,” Oosthuizen said. “We are convinced that the perpetual denial of the knowledge of these tests has fuelled the continuous violation of Ms Semenya’s rights and dignity, by foreign and some local media.”
He said his department had twice requested a report from Chuene on events before, during and after the championships in Berlin, but had received nothing.
He added: “We do not agree with Mr Chuene’s insistence that he lied in Ms Semenya’s interest; in fact we are of the view that his lies were to Ms Semenya’s detriment. In light of this, we now request the membership of ASA to not only take disciplinary action against Mr Chuene, but to fire him from his position as the president of ASA. If they fail to do so, they will be running the risk of being led by a liar.”
When Semenya returned to a hero’s welcome in Johannesburg last month, Chuene was flanked by Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, ex-wife of the former president Nelson Mandela, and Julius Malema, the president of the African National Congress Youth League. The trio were criticised for attempting to steal the athlete’s glory.
Chuene denied he had any reason to consider withdrawing her from the event. Asked whether the ASA had conducted tests on her, he said: “We did not . . . there was nothing that warranted us to do that.” It has since been reported that gender tests ordered by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) show that Semenya is intersex.
The ANC’s secretary-general Gwede Mantashe, said: “The ANC is appalled by the manner in which both the IAAF and the ASA have handled the issue. It is the view that she has been victimised and subjected to unnecessary public scrutiny, thus denying her dignity.” But Chuene indicated that he would not step down voluntarily. He said: “I will face this head on. I won’t jump ship.”
Guardian Service
