Runner is a 'hermaphrodite'

Sun UK ^ | 9/10/09 | staff

[pissant]

HE controversy over gender row champion runner Caster Semenya deepened today — after reports claimed sex swap tests have shown she is a HERMAPHRODITE.

South African gold-medallist Semenya, 18, has both male and female organs, it was claimed.

And sources close to the International Association of Athletics Federations — who ordered extensive tests on the teen after her amazing 800m win at the World Athletics Championships last month — say the results mean she could still be stripped of her medal.

[exile]

She reminds me of a young Michelle Obama.

[a fool in paradise]

HE was running against women.

[Waco]

Kowum-bonga

[a fool in paradise]

>>

The operative word being "Walk".

[utahagen]

I feel sorry for this woman, but the controversy is because “hermaphrodite” is not the same as “female”. If there are going to be separate races for men and women, it does not make sense for someone who is biologically neither gender — or who is effectively both genders — to run in either the man or woman race.

[pissant]

The only ones who have reason to squawk are the competitors.

[Sloth]

It is a genetic disorder where one is born with male and female sets of genitals.

It's my understanding that true hermaphroditism does not occur in humans. It sounds like you are talking about 'intersex' or ambiguous genitalia, which is not necessarily a genetic problem at all.

[Blood of Tyrants]

There are practically no true human hermaphrodites. Most are males who suffer from the lack of an enzyme that allows the processing of testosterone. Others are females with an enlarged clitoris.

[mnehring]

You are right. Technically, hermaphrodite is the wrong term, in humans it is called pseudohermaphroditism if the person is genetically male or female but have both sets of genetailia and Klinefelter’s syndrome if they have an extra set of chromosomes as well.

[Sloth]

She had surgery as an infant and was raised as a girl but has very masculine features and voice. It’s a tough life - works in a factory and never had a boyfriend.

Sounds like you have a male cousin who was butchered by a "doctor."

[RexBeach]

Dunno. But these United States are sure getting complicated.

However, I think a Mustang is still a Ford, and that a Corvette is still a Chevrolet.

Beyond that, it’s a roll of the dice now.

[a fool in paradise]

It's called an "unfair" competative advantage. There is a history in professional athletics of men masquerading as women and persons of both sexes taking steroids so testing was appropriate.

Additionally the person in question took "offense" at the charge and some suggested it was grounded it racism.

One article suggested ending the practice of segregating men and women into separate competitions. Perhaps the time has come.

[a fool in paradise]

Traditionally in these games there are the “ALL MALE” competitions, and those for “OTHERS”. This business of worrying about the exact configuration of the “OTHERS” is relatively recent. The ancients sure didn’t care, nor did the guys who restarted the Olympics.

Would Johnny Eck count as "ALL" Male or "HALF" Male?

[aruanan]

Intersex

Intersex is a group of conditions where there is a discrepancy between the external genitals and the internal genitals (the testes and ovaries)

Intersex can be divided into four categories:

46, XX Intersex
46, XY Intersex
True Gonadal Intersex
Complex or Undetermined Intersex

46, XX Intersex. The person has the chromosomes of a woman, the ovaries of a woman, but external (outside) genitals that appear male. This usually is the result of a female fetus having been exposed to excess male hormones before birth. The labia ("lips" or folds of skin of the external female genitals) fuse, and the clitoris enlarges to appear like a penis. Usually this person has a normal uterus and Fallopian tubes. This condition is also called 46, XX with virilization. It used to be called female pseudohermaphroditism. There are several possible causes: (see article at link)

46, XY Intersex. The person has the chromosomes of a man, but the external genitals are incompletely formed, ambiguous, or clearly female. Internally, testes may be normal, malformed, or absent. This condition is also called 46, XY with undervirilization. It used to be called male pseudohermaphroditism. Forming normal male external genitals depends on the appropriate balance between male and female hormones; therefore, enough requires the adequate production and function of male hormones. 46, XY intersex has many possible causes: (see article at link)

True Gonadal Intersex. Here the person must have both ovarian and testicular tissue. This might be in the same gonad (an ovotestis), or the person might have one ovary and one testis. The person may have XX chromosomes, XY chromosomes, or both. The external genitals may be ambiguous or may appear to be female or male. This condition used to be called true hermaphroditism. In most people with true gonadal intersex, the underlying cause is unknown, although in some animal studies it has been linked to exposure to common agricultural pesticides.

Complex or Undetermined Intersex Disorders of Sexual Development. Many chromosome configurations other than simple 46, XX or 46, XY can result in disorders of sex development. These include 45, XO (only one X chromosome), and 47, XXY, 47, XXX -- both cases have an extra sex chromosome, either an X or a Y. These disorders do not result in an intersex condition where there is discrepancy between internal and external genitalia. However, there may be problems with sex hormone levels, overall sexual development, and altered numbers of sex chromosomes.

[Artemis Webb]

"One article suggested ending the practice of segregating men and women into separate competitions."

I'm sorry that's just retarded. You have to separate them. Just as you have to have weight classes for certain types of sports. Women (as a group) will never be able to run as fast as men (as a group) because men have bigger lungs. Bigger lungs means more oxygen going to muscles which translates to a higher level of performance. It's not about sexism it's about physiology.

[cynwoody]

It may boil down to chromosomes...is he/she’s an XY, genetic male with femaleish parts...or is she an XX, genetic female with some maleish parts?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intersexuality#Conditions

Medical details aside, I would say she shouldn't lose the medal as long as she's XX and not taking funny drugs or hormones. Special advantages caused by a natural medical condition should just be how the cookie crumbles for her competitors.

[Bad Jack Bauer]

Extensive tests?

They couldn't just yank down it's shorts?
/br> Megyn Kelly said something similar on her show when the controversy first came to a head. She said something like, "Why should it take weeks for results? Give me 5 minutes and a bathroom and I can get results!"

[Leftism is Mentally Deranged]

“But men and women are all the same - it seems ok for women to demand to play in mens sports - seems to me women must allow men to compete in theirs”
that’s logic. Leftists don’t do logic.

[trisham]

The male side is clearly winning the competition.

[papasmurf]

Semenya is claimed to have NO womb or ovaries — and has internal testes, the male sexual organs which produce testosterone.

The row over Semenya's biology has caused huge divisions — with South African politicians calling slurs she is a man "racist and sexist." Her birth certificate has the teen listed as female and urine tests showed that, despite her having higher than average male hormone levels, they are within the official limits for a woman.

They should let HER keep HER stuff, disqualify her from future events, make a new regulation that pre-testing is mandatory, and set a testing standard that must be complied with so that this doesn't happen again.

I feel for badly for her, honestly, she must be devastated.