Olympic champion Caster Semenya wins court fight in sex eligibility case

Castor Semenya, a two-time Olympic track champion, can now claim a win in the courtroom, at least temporarily

Thursday, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Semenya had her rights to a fair hearing violated while arguing in front of Switzerland's Supreme Court

It's the latest twist in Semenya's seven-year legal battle against sex eligibility rules in track and field competitions

The European court's vote was 15-2 in favor of Semenya, who posted a photo of herself in the court chamber with a three-fist emoji caption, symbolizing her fight for justice

Semenya is a two-time Olympic 800-meter champion and three-time world champion. She dominated the sport for a decade, beginning in 2009

In May of 2019, she won her 30th consecutive race in Doha, Qatar

The legal challenges to her eligibility began a year before that final win

The 34-year-old South African who is now a coach was born with differences in sexual development

and is considered a DSD athlete by the World Athletic Council and other governing bodies

Her medical condition means she has elevated testosterone levels. Though her career effectively ended when the World Athletic Council banned DSD athletes from competing

she is still fighting against rules by other governing bodies that require DSD athletes to reduce their natural testosterone levels to be able to compete in female sports In an interview with BBC Sport after Thursday ruling she explained why

My role is to make sure that I correct where I see or I feel is wrong

I become a voice for those who cannot speak out. I have to lead by example

I have to remind leadership that as leaders, the best that we could do is the best

to act in the best interest of athletes to make sure they are protected

The European court's ruling will not change the World Athletic Council's ban on DSD athletes

but rather sends the case back to Switzerland's federal courts. The ruling's main decision determined the Swiss government had not satisfied the requirement under Article 6

which is the right to a fair hearing. It's overwhelming for someone who has been waiting for over 15 years to be able to hear that

I mean, you know, you feel hurt. It's a beautiful feeling. The court did not take up other aspects of the appeal

such as whether Semenya was discriminated against by the Swiss courts, but it did award her 80,000 euros from the state of Switzerland in respect to costs and expenses

Semenya's legal team said after the ruling they have yet to decide what their next move will be

but the case will be watched closely by other sports, which are reviewing their eligibility rules in women's events

For Straight Arrow News, I'm Chris Francis