After being temporarily barred by the Swiss Supreme Court from running in her preferred event, the 800 meters, the Olympic gold medalist Caster Semenya faces a murky future with a far more difficult road to navigate if she wants to maintain her position as one of the world’s top female athletes.

The ruling bans Semenya, of South Africa, from international races between 400 meters and a mile until her case is resolved once and for all by Switzerland’s top court. Those distances, which combine speed and endurance, are the races in which athletes with testosterone in the male range, like Semenya, have an unfair advantage in muscle strength and oxygen-carrying capacity, track’s governing body believes. They are also among the most high-profile events at the Olympics and world championships, the most important meets for the sport.

Semenya announced plans to try the 3,000 meters after losing an initial ruling in May. But that event is not run at the world championships or the Olympics.

Semenya, 28, ran a 5,000 meter race in a personal best of 16:05 in April, but that time is well short of the qualifying standard of 15:22 that would be required even to participate in the event at the world championships this fall in Qatar. She would also have to be among the top runners at that distance from South Africa.