Israeli referee Sapir Berman beamed as she recalled the moment her “dream came true” earlier this year, when she became the first transgender woman to officiate an international football match.

“I always wanted to be a woman, and I always wanted to be a football referee — and then those two came together and fused into one dream that just exploded with joy,” the 31-year-old told AFP.

“It’s an uplifting, powerful feeling — the feeling that I’m doing the right thing, that I’m choosing myself, that I’m showing the world it’s possible.

“Since I was five, I remember wanting to be a woman, wanting to be a girl. And when I started playing football, I realised that the dream of being a woman and playing football didn’t go together,” she said.

“So I decided to hide who I was and just keep playing football. I hid myself for almost 26 years.”

Berman grew up in a football-loving family, playing as a defender for around 10 years from around the age of five.

When she realised her professional ambitions were not working out, she joined the referees association and worked her way up to preside over men’s matches in the Israeli Premier League.

But all the while, Berman felt she was hiding her innermost secret and was even frustrated during the initial stage of her hormone therapy.

It was when the Covid-19 pandemic hit and Berman was plunged into lockdown that she began reflecting on the future.

“I asked myself: ‘Is this what life will look like? Is this where it’s going?’” she said.

“I decided to reveal myself.”

Berman initially feared her career in football was over, but said her brother suggested she try to make it work.

– ‘A lot of questions’ –

England’s Lucy Clark became the first transgender woman in the world to referee a match in 2018, in the third tier of English women’s football, but has never officiated internationally.

When Berman officiated the Women’s Under-17 Euro qualifier between Northern Ireland and Montenegro in Belfast in March, it was a first for European football, according to UEFA.

Berman said the journey was not always easy, despite great support and professionalism from Israel’s referees association.

“There were a lot of questions, and a lot of moments where they said: ‘We don’t know what to do.’ And I also didn’t know what to do, what it involved, what to expect, or how the process would go,” she said.

Berman said that when she began hormone therapy as part of her transition, she initially felt resentful towards her body.

“Outside the field, I felt amazing. On the field, I felt that I destroyed my career,” she said.

She failed two fitness tests and was moved down a league, but with the help of a sports psychologist and “a lot of trial and error”, she made her comeback.

Berman received her international badge earlier this year and dreams of refereeing a match in the Champions League, the European Championship or the World Cup.

– ‘Different layers’ –

Transgender participation has become a hot-button issue as different sports try to balance inclusivity with ensuring fair competition.

Earlier this year, England’s Football Association announced that transgender women would no longer be allowed to play in women’s football.

Berman said she trusted those in decision-making bodies and expected them to “find the way to integrate, to unite, to diversify”.

“Human beings are made up of so many different layers, and you come and reject us for just one reason,” she said, explaining how an athlete’s performance could also be affected by mental, financial, geographical or familial factors.

On the pitch, Berman said she has received positive reactions from both players and supporters.

“The fans continued to curse me — only now, they did it in the feminine form,” she said, adding it “was a kind of stamp of approval — that they see me exactly as I am”.

And on the street, young people have told her that her story has given them hope.

“That fills me up. It gives me so much strength to keep going and doing what I do — because at the end of the day, I chose myself.”

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Nigeria’s Ezekiel Nathaniel has been backed to win a medal in the men’s 400m hurdles at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo after a Kenyan official singled him out on arrival in Japan.

Speaking to Making of Champs at Narita International Airport, the Kenyan representative made clear that while his first loyalty was to his own team, he also wished success for the Nigerian hurdler.

“As much as I’m wishing my team all the best, all the medals, I also wish Nigerian Nathaniel the 400m hurdles to get a medal, at least a medal, either gold, silver, or bronze for the hard-working Nigerians,” he said.

When asked why he picked Nathaniel, the official explained that his view was shaped by the 22-year-old’s consistency.

“I’ve seen him run. I’ve seen him run a couple of races, and he’s come out to be one of the best over a couple of years now,” he said.

Nathaniel arrives in Tokyo as one of Africa’s leading medal hopes. He broke his own Nigerian record this summer at the Silesia Diamond League with a run of 47.31s, finishing between world record-holder Karsten Warholm and Qatar’s Abderrahman Samba. That time ranks him fifth fastest in the world this year.

The fresh Baylor University graduate has also gone unbeaten on the American collegiate circuit and produced the third-fastest mark in NCAA history.

He told the Diamond League media in August that he is confident of finding another gear at the Championships.

“I feel like I’m running fast right now, but I still have more in the tank and I’m ready to do more,” he said.

Nathaniel has already lined up against the best in the world, testing himself against Alison dos Santos and Rai Benjamin in Eugene before going head-to-head with Warholm in Silesia.

He believes that experience has sharpened him. “By running with these guys, I feel like it is different to race with the professionals in the game. It feels good to compete with them,” he said.

The men’s 400m hurdles in Tokyo will once again feature Warholm, Benjamin and Dos Santos, a trio who have transformed the event in recent years and continue to push the boundaries of what is possible. Warholm arrives as world leader after clocking 46.28s in Poland, Benjamin is the Olympic champion, and Dos Santos is seeking to reclaim the world crown he won in Oregon in 2022.

With the heats of the discipline set for September 15, semi-finals two days later and the final on September 19, Nathaniel will be aiming to turn that outside faith into Nigeria’s first global medal in the event.

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Chelsea striker Liam Delap could be sidelined until December after injuring his hamstring before the international break, manager Enzo Maresca said on Friday.

Delap signed from Ipswich for £30 million ($40 million) in June and has featured in all of Chelsea’s three Premier League matches so far.

But he was forced off early in the 2-0 win against Fulham on August 30.

“Liam, I think it’s around 10 to 12 weeks, so a long way to go,” Maresca told reporters on Friday.

Chelsea recalled forward Marc Guiu from a loan spell at Sunderland to cover for Delap after Senegal striker Nicolas Jackson left the Blues for Bayern Munich on transfer deadline day.

Maresca also has another forward option in Joao Pedro, who arrived at Stamford Bridge from Brighton in July.

But the Chelsea boss admitted Delap’s injury left him short of forward options ahead of Saturday’s west London derby at Brentford.

“We have the injury for sure now in this moment as a number nine,” he said.

“The only one is Guiu. And Joao (Pedro) can also play there. Against Fulham, we used Tyrique (George) as a nine. So we can also think about him.”

England forward Cole Palmer is nearing a return after missing Chelsea’s victories over West Ham and Fulham with a groin injury and could be involved on Saturday.

But Maresca said there was a question mark over the involvement of Joao Pedro, Estevao Willian and Andrey Santos, all of whom arrived back in England on Thursday after playing in Brazil’s 1-0 defeat to Bolivia.

Moises Caicedo returned late on Thursday following Ecuador’s victory over Argentina.

Brazil’s game took place at an altitude of more than 4,000 metres, creating a further complicating factor in recovery times.

“The three Brazilian players arrived yesterday; they didn’t train, they did some recovery sessions. Moises arrived last night. They’re all a question mark for tomorrow”, Maresca said.

Maresca said winger Alejandro Garnacho was “working well” since his arrival from Manchester United but was not yet 100 per cent fit.

Chelsea, who won the UEFA Conference League and Club World Cup in Maresca’s first season, sit second in the Premier League after three games this term.

The club were charged by the Football Association on Thursday with 74 alleged breaches of rules related to payments to agents between 2009 and 2022.

The FA said the charges primarily relate to the period between the 2010/11 and 2015/16 seasons when the Blues were owned by Roman Abramovich.

“I know the club is satisfied about the situation, about the process,” Maresca said.

“Personally I don’t have anything to add because I don’t have any idea. If I say something, I could be wrong. I just focus on the pitch side, which I can control.

“I don’t think the players are too worried about the situation to be honest.”