British athlete Lynsey Sharp has stated that she would have won a bronze medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics had gender testing rules of today been in place back then. Sharp came sixth in the women’s 800m, competing against three athletes later banned due to differences in sexual development (DSD).
Speaking to Sky News presenter Jacquie Beltrao, Sharp highlighted the significant changes in the sport since her competitive days. “Now and then, looking back, I could have possibly won an Olympic medal,” she says, “but back then, those were the rules, and I did my best.” Although she acknowledges a desire to be competing in the present, she accepts that her time was different.
The Rio 800m final saw South Africa’s Caster Semenya take gold, with Burundi’s Francine Niyonsaba and Margaret Wambui taking silver and bronze respectively. Under current rules, none of these athletes would be eligible to compete. World Athletics has introduced gene testing to determine the presence of the SRY gene, crucial for male development, as a prerequisite for competing in the female category at the elite level. This supersedes previous rules that permitted athletes with DSD to compete provided they reduced their testosterone levels.
Sharp, reflecting on her experience, felt the issue was not addressed directly during her time, which somewhat marred her experience in the sport and in Rio. Despite running a personal best and a Scottish record in that race, she found it a challenging time. The topic remains contentious, not only in sports but also in society at large.
Current discussions on the matter include the case of Olympic gold medallist Imane Khelif, who was not allowed to compete in the world championships due to refusal of sex testing. Boxing has also adopted mandatory sex tests to detect the presence of a Y chromosome at world championships. Khelif has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport against undergoing the test.
As the World Athletics Championships unfold in Tokyo, where British and Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson is expected to claim her first world title in the women’s 800m final, the issue of gender identification in sports remains under the spotlight. Hodgkinson is making her return from a year’s absence due to two torn hamstrings.
