Santhi Soundarajan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Santhi Soundarajan (also spelled Santhi Soundararajan, born April 1981) is an Indian athlete who competes in the middle distance track events. She was stripped of a silver medal won at the 2006 Asian Games after failing a gender verification test, disputing her eligibility to participate in the women's competition.
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[edit] Biography
Santhi Soundarajan was born in 1981 in the village of Kathakkurichi in Pudukkottai District of Tamil Nadu, India.
Soundarajan holds the national record for the women’s 3000 metres steeplechase clocking 10:44.65 seconds. At a national meet in Bangalore in July 2005 she won the 800m, 1,500m and 3000m. She won the silver medal in 800m at the Asian Championships in Incheon, South Korea in 2005.
[edit] Asian Games controversy
Soundarajan won a silver medal in the women's 800m race at the 2006 Asian Games held in Doha, Qatar in December 2006 clocking 2 minutes, 3.16 seconds.[1] However, she underwent a sex test shortly after claiming victory, and the results indicated that she "does not possess the sexual characteristics of a woman."[2] [3] Soon after the results of the sex test came out, she was stripped of her silver medal.
While such sex tests are not compulsory for competitors, the International Association of Athletics Federations can request that contenders take such tests at any time, and include intensive evaluation by a gynecologist, an endocrinologist, a psychologist, and an internal medicine specialist.
According to her coach, P. Nagarajan, her upbringing in impoverished rural India, where she reportedly only started eating proper meals in 2004, may be a reason behind the test result.[4]
It was later reported in media articles that Santhi may have been born with an intersexed condition known as Adrogen Insensitivity Syndrome (AIS). This condition includes the existence of a 'Y' chromosome in women (typically only associated with a male genotype) and results in an inability to respond to Androgens. Despite such intersexed conditions being accepted in the Olympics over recent years, the Asia Games seem to have failed to follow confidentiality protocol, resulting in Santhi's unnecessary disqualification.
In September 2007, there were reports that Santhi Soundarajan attempted suicide, reportedly by consuming pesticide at her residence. Gender, economic and Sports pressure in Indiaare also partly to blame for the bid.
