The Court of Arbitration for Sport posted a notice on Friday that its decision in the South African challenge to the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) regulations on the acceptance level of testosterone in women competing in specific events has been postponed.
“The CAS had initially announced that the final decision would be communicated on 26 March 2019, i.e. 6 months prior to the World Championships in Doha.
“Since the hearing held in Lausanne, Switzerland, from 18 to 22 February 2019, the parties have filed additional submissions and materials and agreed to postpone the issuance of the CAS award until the end of April 2019. No specific date has been set yet.”
Translation: This is a difficult case and the CAS knows its decision will be closely scrutinized and possibly appealed to the Swiss Federal Tribunal, despite both sides agreeing to be bound by the CAS finding.
If the IAAF should prevail, the later decision date could cause considerable difficulties for women who have high testosterone levels – like South African star Caster Semenya – to begin a treatment regimen in enough time for the 2019 World Championships.
But, then again, Semenya and Athletics South Africa believe they will prevail.
