#NaturallySuperior is the National Movement Supporting Athlete Caster Semenya
The South African government has launched the movement to support athlete Caster Semenya and her right to compete as she is.
South African athlete and 800m Olympic gold-medalist, Caster Semenya, will be appearing at the Court for Arbitration of Sport next week to argue against the International Association of Athletics Federation's (IAAF) request that she lower her testosterone levels when competing in sporting events. The South African government has launched a nation-wide campaign to rally support for her.
In a heartfelt plea, Semenya says: "I just want to run naturally, the way I was born. It is not fair that I am told I must change. It is not fair that people question who I am."
Semenya's lawyers have argued that Semenya's genetic gift be celebrated instead of discriminated against. They added that:
"[Semenya's] case is about the rights of women such as herself who are born as women, reared and socialised as women, who have been legally recognized as women for their entire lives, who have always competed in athletics as women, and who should be permitted to compete in the female category without discrimination."
This morning, the government made their support for Semenya official when they established the #NaturallySuperior mobilization campaign. The Minister of Sport, Toko Xasa, has condemned the IAAF's proposed regulations to restrict Semenya's testosterone levels and described them as being a "gross violation of internationally accepted standards of human rights".
Xasa is calling on different stakeholders both locally and internationally to participate in the campaign which centers rigorous conversation on the rights of women competing in sports.
South Africans are showing their support for Semenya on social media.