Semenya will return to the Olympic Stadium in Berlin on Sunday, the venue where she won the 800-meter world championship title last year before her career was put on hold by the gender tests.
“I don't want to talk about the past. I want to talk about the future,” Semenya said Friday. “I am preparing for the Olympics and that's what I want to talk about.” The 19-year-old South African hopes to run under two minutes in Berlin for the first time since her ban was lifted. She will also run in Brussels next week and compete in two more meets in Italy while hoping to make the South African team for the Commonwealth Games in October.
Semenya was cleared to compete in July and has run only twice since her ban was lifted — at two minor races in Finland. She now has Sunday's race in Berlin, the Aug. 27 Diamond League final in Brussels, and the two meets in Italy — on Aug. 31 in Rovereto and on Sept. 9 in Milan.
Semenya declined to comment on unconfirmed reports that she had been asked to undergo unspecified medical treatment by IAAF, the athletics federation that had suspended her pending the gender probe after her victory one year ago at the world championships in Berlin.
“I don't want to talk about anyone who is bigger than me,” Semenya said. “You'll have to go straight to them (IAAF).” Her Finnish manager, Jukka Harkonen, also said it was time to put the ban behind his client.
“The case is closed. We want to forget,” Harkonen said.
“I have no idea why the investigation took that long.” Semenya said the enforced break may even turn out to have some benefit for her future career.
“It was good to spend time with my family, friends. It was good to rest,” she said. “Maybe I can come back with fast times.” Semenya is hoping to break two minutes in Sunday's race after running 2:02.41 in her second race, a marked improvement over 2:04.22 in her comeback race but far behind the 1:55.45 in which she won the world title in Berlin.
Her coach, Michael Seme, said Semenya was grateful to meet organizers for inviting her.
“Maybe it will help her run fast times. We still need some races. Without competition you can't run fast,” Seme said. “We are fighting for under two minutes, but it's going to be difficult.” Semenya has not been named in the South African team for the Oct. 3-14 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi but a final cut will be made Aug. 25 and she is expected to be included.
But Semenya's focus is now clearly in preparing to defend her title at next year's world championships in Daegu, South Korea, and the following year's Olympics.
“It's going to be a different year next year,” Harkonen said. “Everything she had done in the past had gone down the toilet. ... Now, I really hope Caster's career will take off.”
