(Reuters) – Caster Semenya, the double Olympic 800m champion, said she offered her vagina for athletics officials at 18 to prove that she was female in an interview on HBO’s Real Sports. The interview will air Tuesday.

Semenya (now 31) burst onto international scene when she took home the 800m women’s title in 2009. This was just hours after Semenya’s sport’s world governing body had announced that she would be subject to gender verification testing.

Semenya stated that they thought I was a fool in the HBO Real Sports interview. The interview will air on HBO at 10:00 pm. ET (0200 GMT). They said, “It’s fine. “I’m a woman, it doesn’t matter that I am a male. You can see my vagina if you’d like to know that I am a female. “All right?”

Semenya’s gender tests showed that the runner did not have an ovaries or a womb, however, her internal testes indicated that the woman had male sexual organs producing testosterone. She had three times the levels of this hormone than the “normal” female.

Semenya is affected by hyperandrogenism. The hormone testosterone increases muscle strength, muscle mass, as well as the body’s ability to utilize oxygen.

After the 2011 ruling by World Athletics (then the International Association of Athletics Federations), that female athletes suffering from hyperandrogenism must medically reduce their testosterone levels, she took medication.

Semenya stated that the experience made her feel sick. It also made me gain weight and panic attacks. I didn’t even know if it would cause a heart attack. It’s almost like pinning yourself with a knife each day. However, I couldn’t help but to do it.

“I am 18, I want the Olympics. That’s my only choice.”

Jonathan Taylor, World Athletics’ lawyer, spoke during an interview on HBO Real Sports. He disagreed with the medical panels including the World Medical Association that condemned the sport’s governing body for asking women with different sex (DSDs), to use drugs in order to compete.

“You claim it’s not good for my health, so I’m asking you: “Why would the leading medical experts in the world say that this is what they’d recommend?” Taylor said.

Semenya replied, “Johnathan must slice his tongue and toss it aside. Semenya replied, “Jonathan must cut his tongue and throw it away. He will understand why that tortured me.” He’ll understand.”

Semenya lost in 2020 her appeal to Swiss Federal Tribunal for a decision to overturn a 2019 Court of Arbitration ruling stating that women with high testosterone levels should take medications to decrease it.

The tribunal was approached by her after CAS (sport’s highest court) ruled that World Athletics rules were needed for athletes with DSDs who compete in races ranging 400m to a mile.