IAAF Testosterone Rules See Kenya Drop Two Athletes

Kenya has dropped two sprinters from its IAAF World Relay championship team this week as a result of the recent introduction of limits to testosterone levels for female participants.

100m and 200m champion Maximilla Imali and 400m athlete Evangeline Makena will not participate after blood tests revealed high levels of testosterone in the pair.

Explaining the decision director of Athletics Kenya Paul Mutwii told AFP, "We could not risk travelling with the two athletes after the recent IAAF ruling on the restriction of testosterone levels on female runners took effect on May 8."

The decision follows a ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) earlier this month in favour of the new regulations introduced by the IAAF, which were challenged by South African world champion Caster Semenya. Semenya has since stated that she intends to continue to challenge the requirement to medicate testosterone levels in order to qualify.

Imail is quoted by AFP as commenting, "This is a scheme to demoralise us. I am not ready to quit athletics, nor to take a suppressant treatment. I am so happy the way God made me to be."