Semenya finishes 13th, doesn’t advance in 5,000 at worlds

IN one way, this race was like so many in the past for Caster Semenya. When she crossed the finish line, there wasn’t anyone near her.

This race, though, was the 5,000 meters — not her specialty, the 800 — and when Semenya crossed the line all alone, she was in 13th place.

She failed to advance through the opening heat at world championships Wednesday, an expected result for the South African who is barred from her best event because of rules that demand she take hormone-reducing drugs to enter races between 400 meters and one mile.

Semenya finished the 12 1/2-lap race — run in blistering 91-degree (32 Celsius) heat — in 15 minutes, 46.12 seconds, 54 seconds behind the winner, Gudaf Tsegay of Ethiopia. Given the circumstances, Semenya said this did not feel like defeat, and she was nowhere near giving up.

“I think it is great to