Olympic 800m champion can ‘compete without restriction’ while appeal is pending, says legal team

Caster Semenya can return to race “without restriction” while her appeal against the IAAF’s new regulations on female classification is pending, the two-time Olympic 800m champion’s legal team has said.

According to a statement released on Monday, the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland has “ordered the IAAF to immediately suspend the implementation of the eligibility regulations against Caster Semenya”.

Semenya was quoted as saying: “I am thankful to the Swiss judges for this decision.

“I hope that following my appeal I will once again be able to run free.”

Semenya recently lost her landmark case at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against the IAAF’s new rules, which relate to restricting testosterone levels in female runners in certain events.

The ‘IAAF Eligibility Regulations for Female Classification (Athletes with Differences of Sex Development (DSD))’ had originally been due to come into effect on November 1, 2018, but were suspended. Following the CAS ruling, the regulations started on May 8.

Under the new rules Semenya – and other female athletes with DSD – would need to reduce their natural testosterone level in order to take part in certain women’s events in international competition.

The rules for athletes who have DSD apply to the 400m, 400m hurdles, 800m, 1500m, one mile races and combined events over the same distances.

Swiss counsel for Semenya, Dr Dorothee Schramm of Sidley Austin LLP, said: “The Swiss Supreme Court has granted welcome temporary protection to Caster Semenya.

“This is an important case that will have fundamental implications for the human rights of female athletes.”

According to the statement, the Swiss court will issue another ruling on the continued suspension of the IAAF regulations after receiving submissions from the sport’s global governing body.

Andy Murray is planning to make his return to competitive tennis in the doubles at the Fever-Tree Championships at Queen's Club later this month.

The Briton, 32, has not played since the Australian Open and had a hip resurfacing operation in January.

The former world number one, who has since said he is "pain-free", aims to play alongside Spain's Feliciano Lopez.

The tournament in London will start on Monday, 17 June - two weeks before Wimbledon begins.

BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller said: "I don't see this as the start of a doubles career but as a stepping stone.

"He's not ready for singles at all but I think he intends to give it a go later. It is incredibly early days. He's only been back in full training for two weeks.

"It's an obvious way to ease yourself back in, but who knows what will happen from here."

Three-time Grand Slam champion Murray had a hit with Australian Nick Kyrgios at Wimbledon last month and posted a video of him serving on grass on his Instagram account earlier this week.

Murray has said he could play doubles at Wimbledon but effectively ruled out competing in the singles this year.

Former British tennis player Naomi Cavaday says Murray will not want to feel any pressure on his return and that will be reflected in his choice of partner.

"In this particular situation Andy would have asked around the locker room to see who was set," said Cavaday.

"He wouldn't want to play with a serious doubles guy, then there is pressure on the match. He doesn't want pressure on the match, he just wants to play on court.

"So a singles guy who isn't solely focused on doubles means there isn't a huge pressure because that guy isn't trying to make a living."

The Scot had the hip resurfacing operation - which keeps more of the damaged bone than a hip replacement, smoothing the ball down and covering it with a metal cap - in London on 28 January.

Sixteen-time Grand Slam doubles champion Bob Bryan had the same surgery in 2018 and was back playing again, alongside twin brother Mike, five months later.

BBC Sport will have live coverage from the west London club across television, radio and online.

Nour meets Nour in repeat of women’s world final
By SEAN REUTHE

PSA World Championship finalists Nour El Sherbini and Nour El Tayeb have been drawn in the same group in the women’s event of the 2018-2019 CIB PSA World Tour Finals, with the six-day, season-ending event beginning at Cairo’s Mall of Arabia on Sunday June 9.

The top eight men and women on the PSA World Tour Finals Leaderboard will do battle for the prestigious title and the lucrative $320,000 prize fund. Players have earned qualification points at all PSA World Tour events throughout the 2018-19 season, while the reigning PSA World Champions and all PSA Platinum event winners qualified automatically.

Players will compete in group stages between June 9-12 which are held under a best-of-three games format, with the top two from each group progressing to the knockout semi-finals and beyond. The finals revert to the traditional best of five scoring.

Defending champion El Sherbini, who came second on the women’s World Tour Finals Leaderboard, became a three-time World Champion at the age of 23 when she overcame El Tayeb in the final of March’s World Championships held in Chicago’s Union Station. The pair will lock horns once again in Cairo, and they will be joined in Group B by British Open champion Nouran Gohar and England No.1 Sarah-Jane Perry.

World No.1 Raneem El Welily topped the women’s World Tour Finals Leaderboard and she features in Group A alongside British Open runner-up Camille Serme, Hong Kong Open winner Joelle King and World No.9 Tesni Evans.

Group A of the men’s event is headed up by World No.1 and last year’s runner-up Ali Farag. A sensational season which saw him lift major titles at the World Championships, J.P. Morgan Tournament of Champions, Qatar Classic and El Gouna International resulted in him finishing first on the World Tour Finals Leaderboard.

He is joined in Group A by Black Ball Open winner Karim Abdel Gawad, New Zealand’s Paul Coll and World No.7 Mohamed Abouelghar.

World No.2 Mohamed ElShorbagy, who beat Farag to lift a third British Open crown two weeks ago, will line up against World Championship runner-up Tarek Momen, Germany’s Simon Rösner and Peru’s Diego Elias in Group B.

The group stages begin on Sunday June 9 at 19:00 (GMT+2) with El Welily and Evans getting the action under way. Six matches will be played per night for the first four days of the event until the group stages have drawn to a close.

Group stage matches will take place at 19:00, 19:30, 20:00, 20:30, 21:00, 21:30 between June 9-12. The semi-finals will be held at 19:00 on Thursday June 13.

The finals will begin at 19:30 on Friday June 14.

Every match from the tournament will be shown live on SQUASHTV (rest of world), Eurosport Player (Europe only), ON Sport (Egypt) and the official Facebook page of the PSA World Tour.

Squash fans can stay up-to-date tournament by visiting the official website and can purchase tickets for the semi-finals and finals here.

2018-2019 CIB PSA World Tour Finals, Cairo, Egypt, June 9-12. Group Draws.

Picture and graphics courtesy of PSA 

Ulster have awarded new contracts to nine academy players for next season.

Props Tom O'Toole and Eric O'Sullivan and backs Angus Curtis and Michael Lowry have all signed senior contracts.

New development deals have been offered to Robert Baloucoune, James Hume, Angus Kernohan, Zack McCall and Marcus Rea.

The arrival in the off season of Jack McGrath, Bill Johnston, Matt Faddes, Sam Carter and Gareth Milasinovich will further strengthen the senior squad.

O'Toole and Curtis were both upgraded to development contracts midway through Dan McFarland's first season as head coach but the pair have now agreed senior deals along with Lowry and O'Sullivan, who made an impressive 26 appearances during a breakout season after making his senior Ulster debut against Scarlets on the opening day of the 2018-19 campaign.

Baloucoune, the scorer of crucial tries against Leicester and Racing 92 in his debut season, has earned a development contract after scoring six tries in 13 appearances while academy team-mates Hume, Kernohan, McCall and Rea have also been given improved terms.