• As a precautionary health measure for all our partners, associates & employees in light of COVID-19, we are operating with a limited access to work infrastructure and hence there might be delay in services. Your cooperation is highly appreciated.

    DISCLAIMER

    This web-site http://www.atharvalegal.com ("Website") is a public resource for general information about Atharva Legal.

    The material on our Web site has been prepared and published for general information only. There is no effort or intention to solicit new clients or new engagements from existing clients by way of this web site. The information contained in this web site is provided by Atharva Legal as general information which may or may not reflect the most current legal developments. This information is not intended to constitute, and should not be considered, legal reference or legal advice. Atharva Legal does not sponsor reliance upon, or accept responsibility for the information Atharva Legal provides or for the way in which this information should be used, or any actions taken in consequence of the use of such information. Moreover, Atharva Legal doesn't give any guarantees, undertaking or warranties concerning the accuracy, completeness or up-to-date nature of the information provided on this website. Communication of information by or through this web site and your receipt or use of such information is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship with Atharva Legal or any of the Firm's attorneys. The creation of the attorney-client relationship would require direct, personal contact between you and our firm through one or more attorneys and would also require an explicit agreement in the form of an "engagement letter" by the firm that confirms that an attorney-client relationship is established and the terms of that relationship. You should not act or rely upon information contained in the website without specifically seeking professional legal advice. The description anywhere on this website of the results of any specific case or transaction does not mean or suggest that similar results can or could be obtained in any other matter. Each legal matter should be considered on the unique facts of each case. Atharva Legal has endeavored to comply with all applicable legal and ethical requirements in compiling this site. Under no circumstances will Atharva Legal undertake any engagement that conflicts with any ethical, statutory or other requirement applicable to the performance of professional legal services. If you wish to discuss potential legal representation with us, please use the "contact us" link. Although we are pleased to communicate with you, you should not rely upon transmission of an e-mail through this web site to create an attorney-client relationship. Without an attorney-client relationship in the particular matter, we cannot assure that your communications via the web site will be privileged or that we will treat it as privileged, unless we reach an explicit agreement otherwise. Therefore, please do not send confidential or sensitive information to us by e-mail through this web site. Atharva Legal doesn't assume any liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions in the content of this site, or any termination or suspension of this site, and further disclaims any liability of any nature for any loss howsoever caused in connection with using this website. The materials published on this website are unless otherwise stated the copyright works of Atharva Legal You may make copies of materials published which are of interest to you for your own personal use and you may also provide occasional copies to others for information purposes only provided that you do so free of charge and the copies do not comprise substantial parts of the website. When you do make copies for yourself or others, the content of the published material and the copyright notices must remain intact, your communication of the content must not be misleading or inaccurate and a copy of this notice must accompany any copies of the materials which you provide to others. You may not create a link to any part of our website, without our prior written consent. No other use of the materials published on this website is permitted without the express prior written consent of Atharva Legal

    USER ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

    By proceeding further and clicking on the "I Agree" button herein below, I acknowledge that I of my own accord wish to know more about Atharva Legal for my own information and use. I further acknowledge that there has been no solicitation, invitation or inducement of any sort whatsoever from Atharva Legal or any of its members to create an Attorney-Client relationship through this website. I further acknowledge having read and understood the Disclaimer below.

    snippets

    understanding caster semenya verdict and what it means for women sport?

    Sep 10, 2020.

    By: Chakradhar Reddy

    [i]The Verdict by Swiss federal tribunal upholding the Court of Arbitration of Sport verdict has received a largely mixed response, with many women athletes hailing the decision as a step towards right direction in maintaining an equal playing field in Women sports. While Caster Semenya argued on the basis that DSD regulations are discriminatory, IAAF based its arguments on scientific, legal and ethical foundations. The Swiss Federal Tribunal concluded in its ruling "Based on these findings, the CAS decision cannot be challenged. Fairness in sport is a legitimate concern and forms a central principle of sporting competition. It is one of the pillars on which competition is based”.

    [ii]New eligibility regulations which were being questioned were introduced by IAAF in 2018 which clearly mandated women athletes to not have more than 5 nanomoles per litre of testosterone to ensure a level playing field among women athletes.

    The CAS Panel had earlier dismissed the arguments of Caster Semenya that the DSD regulations were invalid and denied the request for arbitration. It had also observed that the even though the regulations were discriminatory in nature, it was necessary and reasonable to protect the equality and integrity that exists in women sports. Semenya had argued that the DSD Regulations unfairly discriminate based on at least five grounds: natural physical, genetic or biological traits, sex, gender, physical appearance and what events a woman competes in. She also submitted that these new regulations would result in a violation of the IAAF Constitution, the Olympic Charter, international human rights laws including those that apply in Monaco (the governing law of the IAAF) and the domestic laws of many countries in which the IAAF has members and holds international competitions.

    The judgment has highlighted the role of scientific studies in ensuring Women sports stay equally competitive and fair.  Higher testosterone levels for intersex track athletes with XY chromosomes would mean a complete disadvantage for their competitors. Generally, women athletes have testosterone levels between 0.12 to 1.79 nmol/L. [iii]Female athletes with testosterone levels of 5nmol/L or above are considered either to be DSD or doped athletes. There is evidence that exogenous doses to increase women’s circulating testosterone to 7.3 nn101/L resulted in 4.4% increased muscle mass 12-26% increased muscle strength and the increasing endogenous testosterone from 0.9 to  5, 7 and 10 nmol/L increased circulating haemoglobin by 5.5%, 7.5% and 8.9% respectively.

    This advantage that arises for intersex athletes from these factors is of the biggest concern. This required them to comply with the regulations where testosterone levels must be decreased. This verdict here would require Semenya lower her testosterone to a level specified by the international track body for at least six months before competing if she wants to participate in any races of 400 meters to a mile. The IAAF has justified its regulations throughout the prolonged legal battle by committing to the idea that 46 XY DSD athletes wishing to compete in women sport do so in fair and safe manner. The verdict could mean IAAF and various sports bodies could bring in many more reforms on the basis of scientific evidence to ensure that majority women athletes with XX chromosomes are not discriminated.

    Next recourse for caster Semenya would be the European court of Human rights but with Olympics being just a year away, one does not expect any relief before the games begin. However, she can participate in either sprint races (200 meters) or long distance races (more than one mile) which don’t fall under the protected category as per [iv]IAAF regulations based scientific analysis measuring the impact of testosterone.

     

     

    [i] https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/08/sports/olympics/caster-semenya-court-ruling.html

    [ii] https://www.worldathletics.org/news/press-release/eligibility-regulations-for-female-classifica

    [iii] Para 611, Page 157, CAS 2018/O/5794 & CAS 2018/O/5798

    [iv] https://www.worldathletics.org/news/press-release/eligibility-regulations-for-female-classifica