Santhi a woman or not so what

Santhi. is a she a woman or a eunuch
So what, after all she is a human basically and that is one thing I don’t think any one can deny, why haven’t they put through this test before she could have got this silver, why wait for the event to get over and save their face by sending her back home and then stripping her of medals, what kind of a sport management is this in India and abroad. It is time the sports personality took into consideration all these factors to avoid unnecessary embarrassment, both to India and themselves. In fact this is a good eye opener where eunuchs are concerned as they are banned in so many fields, they should be allowed in sports to gain their own confidence. Allow a human to select his own field. Though they could be discriminated sexually due to ignorance of society, the government should come forward to provide a platform for them to survive. It is a pathetic scene, though India has been coming up in a big way in this world at present time should discriminate a person with gender factor, all because they don’t have a category there for the lot who cannot be classified under either man or woman…..sunkan

ILites,

I was in tears when i heard SHANTHI was stripped of the silver medal bcos she failed the test. the recap of events shown in the television when she won the second place was haunting me. especially the scene when she fell flat down resting the arms towards the ground, literally pained me.

any true indian wanted shanthi to be acknowledged for her feat, keeping in mind her family background, her phyical make up and her hardwork.

it is shame on our part if we deprive shanthi of what she deserves.

lets pray for the soul.

kanmani

My dear Sundari,

I am very glad you beat me to this. I was pained on reading the treatment meted out to Shanti and wanted to open a discussion in IL. Am happy to see that you have initiated it. Thanks and good work!

I would like to make one point. If Shanti did fail the gender test, then according to rules, it is not wrong to strip her of the medal, in the wider context of fairness in sports. If she has an edge in competing with other average female sportswomen, then it is not fair to the others.

But what is wrong and hurtful is the way, this whole thing has been conducted. It is humiliating not only to Shanti, but also to disgraceful to sports in general. Loss of gender identity is a basic and significant blow to any person, especially a woman. And if Shanti had not been aware of this question, it must have been a rude shock to her and her family. And the way the whole issue has been handled shows malice and lack of vision on the part of many authorities.

Persons of ambiguous gender are as much a part of our society as we are. In fact, they do not need our endorsement for being part of our society. And it is about time, we learnt to handle them with sensitivity and dignity. This is for our own good, since this could happen to anyone.

Such questions should have been addressed at an early stage. Why now? Is there any malafied intention behind in raising such doubts? How and why did the doubt originate now? If the authorities suspected something foul, was this the time to rake that issue? It should have been verifird at the appropriate juncture. This is most unbecoming on our part to stoop to such degrading levels. This is the typical trait of we Indians. We wait for a chance to malign someone. Have any one thought over the trauma of that person.
I personally feel if it is a biological question and if nobody could fine any reason to stop her/he from playing ,then she/he defintely deserves whatever be the returns. May I know is that the eyesore?
Why not we recognise that person's ability and worth.
Iam told of an incident in Goa where the girl in question commited suicide. The coach was fully aware of the girl's predicament and fully encashed at the most appropriate time. I feel sorry for such state of affairs. kanaka

Hai,
it seems that Shanthi was tested as some one had raised doubts about her gender. In the world level, we could not say that they did wrong. It seems that she had been rejected in the Southern Railways for the same reason. Then she should have been more careful, she is not a baby, she is 25 years old. Please do not sympathise just because she is poor. And I do not have any sympathy for her parents- her father had said in the interview that they wanted to have a son -male child to carry on his father's sports interest- and that was why they produced 4 daughters. We can say that he was uneducated, but they should have thought about their economic situations. Actually, we should all feel ashamed that it had ended like this. She could again get tested and prove thm wrong, if she is a female biiologically also.
And, she is not a eunuch- her female harmones seem to be very less. She would have been tested by a gynec also.
And in Jaya news, many of her friends and coach had said that she did seem to be a complete woman. Only she can throw light on the truth.

Hi,
I often wonder if this type of incidence is because of hormone injections given to atheletes.It is sad but an eyeopener to the harassment poor people suffer.
regards,
Meenu

The olympic council has asked to return the medal back to her and chief minister karunanidhi has contributed 15lakhs to her
so let us take her as a human with interest in sports to be rejected might had been a remote action as she might had been too good to let go in a sparce situation in the sports level in india...it is santhi ultimately who wins but will her honour tarnished be back ever....regards sunkan
sorry to add they have planned to take back the medal

Our CM, Mr. Karnunanidhi's support for that girl about whom we are discussing about, is a great gesture. Let us all give a standing ovation for both.

It has to be cleared by someone whether the injections taken by the female atheletes give them a reduction in female harmones. Is there someone who can guide us through this. Fear arises when thought of making a kid an athelete or some kinda sports person.