If you only just started following the sport over the past couple of years, then you may not be familiar with Christine Mboma. The Namibian first made headlines in 2021 when she ran 49.24 for 400m a month before her 18th birthday. Later that summer Mboma would go on to win the Olympic silver medal at 200m and then run the U20 record of 21.78.

Despite her underwhelming start, Mboma’s closing speed was cartoon-like. Simply put, she ran so fast it turned heads… too many heads.

The reason she switched from the 400m to the 200m was related to the findings of her elevated testosterone levels, which were north of 5.0 nmol/L. Following the case of Caster Semenya, it was ruled that athletes with DSD could not compete in the 400m to mile, regardless of hormone suppression.

Last spring the rules changed. As it stands, impacted athletes are eligible to compete in events outside of the 400m to mile following six months of reduced testosterone levels below 2.5 nmol/L. After 24 months, athletes with DSD are eligible to compete in any event.

Following reports from New Era Newspaper in Namibia, Christine Mboma’s coach has confirmed that she is now clear to compete in the 100 and 200, but not yet the 400. One can deduce that this news indicates her testosterone levels have been reduced to eligible levels for six months, but not yet 24.

This is the point in the newsletter that I remind myself that one does not need to have a strong (and in my case, uneducated) opinion on everything that happens. That doesn’t mean I don’t think it’s interesting – has there been such a high-profile athlete to publicly pursue this path to restoring their eligibility in WA’s eyes?

World Athletics has leaned heavily on many years of data and science to support their rulings. Meanwhile, Mboma’s coach maintains that fast is fast. Regardless of where you stand on this issue, or who you are rooting for, I think we can all agree that some people will be upset regardless! And isn’t that the point of sports?