Poor Caster

I cannot believe that anyone in South Africa could support the retention of Leonard Chuene as head of their Athletics council, after the pain and suffering, not just for today but also for years to come, that he has caused Caster Semenya.

Readers will recall that when the issue of Caster's sexuality became not only a public issue in Berlin but also an international scandal as well, Chuene denied knowing that tests to determine the sex of the runner were carried out on the runner in South Africa before her 800m world title win. Now, not only is he admitting that he knew of the problem, but also that doctors had recommended that she be not entered.

Now that it has been revealed that Chuene lied, to add insult to injury, the south African Athletics Council has released a brief statement saying it "unanimously expressed confidence in the current ASA leadership."

In other words, this entire council has shown the international community that it fully supports dishonesty and even worse, their actions have demonstrated a callous disregard for the welfare of this young athlete who is being disgraced internationally because of the dishonesty of the governing organisation. In my book, the world of athletics would be better of without the entire athletics council in south Africa, as it is presently composed.

Why am I surprised however? After all, did South Africa not just elect a prime minister who had been charged with both rape and corruption, despite the sordid facts that came out at the rape trial.

Nelson Mandela set the foundation for South Africa to become a leading light in the black world, but from these recent trends, it appears his legacy will be lost even before he passes from this physical plain.