I found out I had male sex organs while competing as a female olympian | Caster Semenya

Caster Semenya’s life changed forever when she found out she had internal male organs while competing at the 2009 World Championships. She has rejected the label of intersex, and calls herself a ‘different kind of woman.’
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[@s0ycapitan]

Nobody 10 years ago would have predicted this Alice in Wonderland situation. Fair play to Caster, who has gained success. Not fair on the female competitors who don't stand a chance.

[@bryandimery6509]

Almost as bad as the time my testes ruined my period.

[@jeremykille4689]

😂😂😂

[@troubadour1562]

😂😂😂

[@wsamples]

Your male organs are a part of the biology that gives you an advantage over biologically female athletes. It's not some male mindset or "identity" as opposed to some opposed female mindset or "identity" that inspired the divide between male and female athletics, it's those facts of biology. The categories are about fair competition similar to weight categories and limits in many sports. You have male biology you must compete against other biological males. What's going on in your mind is irrelevant to that.

[@KyrilPG]

She has *internal* male organs but *external* female looking organs. She was considered a girl at birth and all her childhood, including by doctors. That's why she legally is female. That's called intersex and is a natural occurrence, between 0.02-0.06% and 2% of births depending on the different forms of "hermaphroditism" (even though that term is no longer used and considered derogatory). For her it's a case of 5α-Reductase deficiency, which causes male sexual différenciation to *not* happen. She looked like a girl at birth and was considered as a girl all her childhood, and so legally too. She has not simple "male biology", she's different, as it happens. The categories you mentioned simply did not account for intersex persons. So, what's the solution? Forcing her into male sports is discriminatory and wouldn't be "fair" either. Or force her to take hormone suppressing drugs like it was proposed? And it's not only "what's going on in her mind" but also in her body and her life. The idea that there only were male and female is wrong, intersex persons have existed for as long as humans exist. It was just extremely taboo and many with ambiguous organs were often forcibly / by default assigned female at birth because doctors and "society" in general deemed it less problematic for a female than to be an androgynous male. Prejudice, once again. So, what's the solution? Can you imagine being forced into another sex / gender because your internal organs differ from what you and your family always thought? As if sports were ever fair. Everyone has physical advantages and disadvantages. Some are born with such physical properties that they have a clear advantage and need less training while still getting better results. They usually are praised by everyone for their exceptional capabilities. But when it's a natural genetic disorder affecting sex it becomes unfair? I'm appalled by most of the comments here, yours is probably the mildest.

[@maryj5593]

Thank you for posting your informative comments. Unfortunately it will not stop some people being unkind let alone show their ignorance. Take care 🌞

[@GalactusOG]

it's cheating. Plain and simple

[@MerryOlSoulGigglesmith]

Cheating is breaking the rules of fair play

[@tomasnozka1]

Ridiculous! You guys and gals in Times lost your mind with these gender B's!

[@rebrand809]

Is this a parody?

[@rosemiranda7300]

You can certainly compete as a male. Just not as a female. This is a ridiculous argument!

[@proodscot]

From Wikipedia - Semenya has the intersex condition 5α-Reductase 2 deficiency, which only affects genetic males.[8][9][10] Individuals with this condition have normal male internal structures that are not fully masculinized during the embryo's development, resulting in external genitalia that appear ambiguous or female at birth.[10]

[@mistermoggy8707]

It also states they fathered a child.

[@jennifervoss]

Well Caster, luckely for you, athletic categories are divided by sex not gender. Which means, you cheated by not running against men. The women's categrory isn't for underperforming male athletes. Stop your pitty play!

[@cebedecebede]

I think chromosomes should be the only way to determine which category you can compete in. Caster has XY, so men. Otherwise it’s not fair for the women.

[@ingoditrust7784]

Who needs this? Really...

[@IbnTufayl1]

Virtue-signalling holier-than-thou British journalists 🤷🏼‍♀️

[@ingoditrust7784]

@@IbnTufayl1 what virtue and what holiness, though?

[@davidw9570]

Ugh this is kinda pandering trying to get brownie points eh?

[@kimchi2780]

That headline shows we live in a clown world.

[@benjaminfranklin8412]

Males experience 5a-reductase 2. Females do not. Caster has 5a-reductase 2. Thus, he is male.

[@oliverhardy34]

Retrospectively all those that came 2nd should be declared as winners and other competitors move up one place. However, those that allowed him to run must take half the blame.

[@kellypat125]

In the 2016 Olympics for the 800 m women finals, it is believed that perhaps all 3 female medalists (Caster got gold) are male with 5-ARD. 5th place Joanna Jozwik appears and sounds female, at least. 4th place, too. Maybe people are scared to say that for fear of looking racist since all 3 medallists are black

[@gzoechi]

That just to ruin female sports. Lots of men always had problems with womens sports.

[@user-sl9pj4od2m]

Ok bro

[@johnkeane5178]

Mental health

[@proodscot]

Who is this guy?

[@Ray.M.12345]

She is a woman she was born intersex.

[@proodscot]

@@Ray.M.12345 Wikipedia doesn’t agree - Semenya has the intersex condition 5α-Reductase 2 deficiency, which only affects genetic males.[8][9][10] Individuals with this condition have normal male internal structures that are not fully masculinized during the embryo's development, resulting in external genitalia that appear ambiguous or female at birth.[10]

[@annabizaro-doo-dah]

​@@Ray.M.12345 He's an XY male. He merely has internal testes and that operation they mentioned was to allow them to drop/create a sac or remove them because he's at risk of cancer leaving them in situ. In every way he is male. He's now fathered two kids with his wife.

[@cambridge384]

Competitive sports are separated by the category of sexes for a reason. Caster is an intersex individual with the anatomy of both sexes. It is commendable on Caster's self-acceptance and fight for the choice of being a woman with internal male organs to compete in sports. However, women who are not intersex, do not have a choice to compete against men even if they are very muscular or may be stronger. Due to Caster's biological condition, there should be another separate category for those individuals with both sexes to give all athletes a fair competition.

[@kellypat125]

Does she have the anatomy of a female? Not aware of any parts

[@kelvyns2844]

Cheat

[@vicmarc4984]

Chromosomes ONLY

[@memonk11]

What?!

[@nostromo2112]

Lol not watching

[@fraserct533]

The 'headline soundbite' at the start of this interview is clearly uninformed, racist & a bit embarassing. But, it is almost irelevant to the substance of Casta's, quite heartrending, story. Times Radio: - why push the only uninformed, racist bit as the headline? - you are either trying do discredit Casta or Britain - but to what end? - this is the dregs of cheap tabloid sensationalism

[@heatherwillson-miner1518]

What a graceful and well spoken young woman even in the face of such an aggressive opposition. PCOS does the same thing, ie, increased testosterone. Should every athlete be internally probed or just the women?

[@LL31199]

Pcos does not give you male level testosterone, not even close. You need testicles for that. Women with slightly elevetated levels of testosterone from pcos or some other condition that affects females are not excluded from the female category.

[@annabizaro-doo-dah]

He's an XY male with a male DSD condition that leads to internal testes. They'd established his sex/condition via blood tests & the internal was to confirm testes were indeed internal as he's at risk of developing cancer which is why they needed to operate!! Clearly internals are not required to establish sex🤦‍♀️

[@ruirosa5984]

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@HappyCooker2]

That’s unbelievable I am sure he looked in the mirror every day and the voice a dead give away I know he never thought he was a woman and that goes for the world and let this man take women trophies , please give back

[@wormwoodcocktail]

Moids are truly something else

[@jeremykille4689]

I had to Google that word.

[@johndudley5761]

Eyes yewsed to plays dee Oregons ATS dee church hunch feelings !

[@HBG736]

wonderful personality, I‘deeply impressed

[@matthewdiment2325]

🥱 its not news