Semenya makes final bid for world championships berth

CAPE TOWN-NAMPA/REUTERS Former world 800-metre champion Caster Semenya will make one final bid to qualify for next month's world championships when she races in Belgium on Sunday. The South African will compete just 24 hours before the deadline set for her to break the two-minute barrier required for participation at the August 10-18 competition in Moscow. Having spent almost a year away from the track with injury since winning a silver medal at the 2012 London Olympics, Semenya has already had two unsuccessful attempts to reach her target when she clocked 2:06.58 and 2:04.48 in Finland last week. The 22-year-old rose to global recognition after winning the 2009 world championships in Berlin in a personal best time of 1:55.45 but then spent 12 months on the sidelines after being forced to undergo gender tests. Semenya also took the silver medal in Daegu, South Korea, when she attempted to defend her world title two years ago.