JOHANNESBURG (AP) Caster Semenya will certainly hold South Africa's flag along at the cutting open wedding ceremony of the London Olympics.
Semenya was presented this reverance Wednesday before double-amputee athlete Oscar Pistorius.
"It's this type of opportunity personally to undertake a real major factor similar to that," Semenya stated inside a great audio tracks message. "To transport the flag for the team, it's such a big thing."
Swimmer Cameron truck der Burgh and longer jumper Khotso Mokoena also were regarded for the role, the country's Olympic committee said, but Semenya ended up being that "ideal choice."
The 21-year-old Semenya could bring the actual banner with subsequent Friday's beginning formal procedure throughout the woman initial Olympics, 3 years after she was involved in a gender-test debate in which insecure the woman career as well as sidelined her coming from competitors intended for nearly a new year.
Semenya recognized your dignity in a saved information played out for the statement belonging to the team's flag bearer within Johannesburg, that in addition seemed to be a farewell operate for the team.
The ex - 800-meter earth champion in addition to very last year's entire world gold medalist could not enroll your gathering. She was in Monaco well before Friday's Diamond League meet, exactly where she'll full her final formulations pertaining to your girlfriend Olympic debut at the London Games.
South African Olympic committee leader exec Tubby Reddy stated his or her body as well have considered 400-meter runner Pistorius, who will be placed to make record for the reason that initial amputee runner on the Olympics following getting called to be a last-minute addition in order to South Africa's group this month.
Natalie du Toit, an Olympic swimmer that shed your girlfriend eventually left leg in a very engine motorbike accident, toted South Africa's banner at the 2008 Beijing Games plus which year's Paralympics.
Van der Burgh , some sort of world champion breaststroke swimmer, as well as 2008 Olympic metalic medalist extended jumper Mokoena also had been around contention to transport that flag with London, Reddy said.
"Look, there were a few some athletes while in the reckoning, we all just simply were feeling that will Caster will be the suitable choice," Reddy said. "She's been recently a entire world champ in addition to most people be expecting the woman that will succeed the yellow metal medal. She appeared to be pretty energized and surprised.
"If all of us chose Oscar but not Caster, right now there would have been other theories. I feel we could blessed to get a lot of icons."
Semenya underwent controversial even if assessments in '09 while the lady exploded onto your international field as an 18-year-old through winning everything concept for the worlds in Berlin.
She was sidelined for 11 many months insurance policy coverage IAAF evaluated these lab tests just before getting cleaned to operate for a second time around 2010.
Semenya finished subsequent inside six hundred on the oceans within South Korea last year inspite of encountering injuries for many of 2011 as well as being probably the girl country's top honor desires in London together with Van der Burgh and many other swimmer Chad le Clos.
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