Athlete Semenya is asking for financial help for her legal battle in Switzerland in Strasbourg

The South African intersex athlete Caster Semenya This Friday he asked his followers in South Africa to help finance his legal battle with European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg (ECtHR) against Switzerland, a country that supported preventing her from participating in women’s events.

“We lack money. We have many experts and we need to pay them”Semenya said at a press conference in Johannesburg.

“It’s been a long journey of more than a decade fighting this case. Everything you can contribute will make a big difference”added the athlete, responding to an appeal presented by Switzerlandheadquarters of Court of Arbitration for Sports (TAS)against the conviction for discrimination that the ECHR issued against that country on July 11.

Therefore, Semenya indicated that she is also looking for help to other young people who, like her, have been discriminated against.

“My job now is to advocate for the silent. I have the words they cannot say. I can do this work for them”said.

The Grand Chamber of the Strasbourg Court noted in July that the athlete does not have sufficient institutional and procedural guarantees in Switzerland to assert his arguments of being discriminated against, which are “credible” and “well-founded.”

The decision called into question the doctrine of many federations on intersex athletes, which is based on testosterone levels to allow them to participate in women’s events.

This obligation applies only to athletes with the XY genetic system, which corresponds to females, and not to those with XX, to males.

Switzerland appealed the verdict, which in practice only condemned it to pay the costs of the trial since the athlete did not request any compensation.