I'M DOING GREAT!
YOU South Africa|2 November 2023
A new book, a fulfilling career and two little ones to keep her busy – life is good for Caster Semenya
NOKUTHULA ZWANE-EJIKE
I'M DOING GREAT!

HER outfit is all business – black pants, white shirt, smart jacket, shiny brogues. It’s Mokgadi Caster Semenya as the world has come to know her: no fuss, no-nonsense, confident, and cool.

The Caster who meets us today is also quick to laugh and eager to talk, a woman who’s been through so much but is content with where she is in the world.

She may have been banned from competing in the races she dominated for so long but she’s in a good space – happily married, a devoted mother, an athlete determined to give back to the sport that’s made her so successful.

But the reason she’s here today isn’t because of athletics – it’s because her eagerly anticipated memoir, The Race to Be Myself, is about to be released.

She’s excited about the book, the 32-year-old running sensation says, chatting to us at Kream restaurant in Brooklyn, not far from the University of Pretoria, where she and her wife, Violet Raseboya, coach aspiring young athletes.

 “Sport has always been my life,” she says. 

And sport dominates her memoir, tracing her life from her childhood in Ga-Masehlong village in Limpopo through to her trailblazing battle to compete on her own terms.

There’s also a chapter that unpacks her decision to do a photoshoot with YOU in 2009 when she’d just started making waves internationally.

The images of Caster – in metallic tights, shimmering tops, dresses and stilettos, her cornrows covered by a curly wig and her face in full makeup – caused a stir.

Critics claimed she’d been coerced into presenting an inauthentic feminized version of herself but Caster says that’s far from the truth.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM YOU SOUTH AFRICAView all
BALLON IN THE BAG
YOU South Africa

BALLON IN THE BAG

Manchester City midfielder Rodrigo Hernandez Cascante says his Ballon d'Or win is a victory for Spanish football

time-read
4 mins  |
14 November 2024
IT WAS ALL A LIE
YOU South Africa

IT WAS ALL A LIE

A new doccie exposes the Grey's Anatomy writer who fabricated her life story

time-read
5 mins  |
14 November 2024
'I WILL NEVER GIVE UP'
YOU South Africa

'I WILL NEVER GIVE UP'

After her husband, anticorruption activist Alexei Navalny, was poisoned and murdered by the Kremlin, she became the public face of Russia's opposition. In this candid interview Yulia Navalnaya opens up about life on the run, her perilous family life and why she's continuing her husband's fight to save their country

time-read
10+ mins  |
14 November 2024
AGREE TO DISAGREE
YOU South Africa

AGREE TO DISAGREE

Trevor Noah on how his childhood squabbles with his mother inspired his delightful new book

time-read
4 mins  |
14 November 2024
PAUSE THE CLOCK
YOU South Africa

PAUSE THE CLOCK

Researchers have discovered that the ageing process spikes at 44 and 60. Here's what you can do to slow it down

time-read
5 mins  |
14 November 2024
MPOOMY ON TOP
YOU South Africa

MPOOMY ON TOP

We chat to SA's most popular female podcaster about love, loss and her booming success

time-read
4 mins  |
14 November 2024
MY BROTHER IS NOT TO BLAME
YOU South Africa

MY BROTHER IS NOT TO BLAME

Tinus Drotské says his sibling, ex Bok Nǎka, is the victim in the brawl with a neighbour that landed up in court

time-read
4 mins  |
14 November 2024
MATT THE RECLUSE
YOU South Africa

MATT THE RECLUSE

A year after his friend's tragic death, the actor continues to shun the spotlight

time-read
4 mins  |
14 November 2024
A LEAP OF FAITH
YOU South Africa

A LEAP OF FAITH

After her husband tried to kill her by tampering with her parachute she thought she'd never trust a man again-but now she's found love

time-read
5 mins  |
14 November 2024
THEY'RE MY KIDS!
YOU South Africa

THEY'RE MY KIDS!

This West Coast woman treats her monkeys as iftheyre humans and animal activists are not happy about it

time-read
4 mins  |
14 November 2024