Caster Semenya makes South African athletics history

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Caster Semenya (Pic: Erik van Leeuwen)

Showing that her career is still sizzling, Caster Semenya made South African athletics history in a spectacular performance on Saturday.

According to the Sunday Times, the Olympic athlete became the first person to win the 400m, 800m and 1500m at a single South African Senior Athletics Championships, in one day.

Semenya also managed to win the 400m and 800m races at the Coetzenburg Stadium in Stellenbosch with Olympic qualifying times.

“I’m overwhelmed. I didn’t expect to run fast times like this. I had fun. You’ve got to enjoy what you do and that’s what I’ve been doing in this championship. I haven’t had fun in a while,” Semenya said.

She has become a firm favourite to win the 800m title at the upcoming Rio Olympic Games.

In December last year, Semenya took her long-term relationship with fellow runner Violet Raseboya to the next level in a ceremony that was described as either an engagement or a wedding.

The star athlete is notoriously private about her personal life and has not directly addressed the relationship. Nevertheless, she has become a role model for many in the LGBT community.

Rumours of the couple’s relationship go as far back as 2008 when fellow athletes noticed the two had grown close.

Semenya made global headlines in 2009 when she won the 800 metres at the Berlin Athletics World Championships and then became the subject of investigations and brutal speculation about her gender and sex.

In July 2010, the International Association of Athletics Federations gave Semenya the all-clear to compete as a woman. She went on to win the silver medal in the 800m at the 2012 London Olympic Games.

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