NEW DELHI: Algerian boxer Imane Khelif on Thursday won her opening Olympic boxing bout as opponent Angela Carini of Italy quit after just 46 seconds.
Khelif and Carini only a few punch exchanges before the Italian, in an extremely unusual instance, abandoned the bout.
Citing intense pain in her nose after the opening punches, a tearful Carini quit but Khelif’s win has shook the Paris Olympics.
Khelif has been in the spotlight at Olympics as she had earlier failed a gender eligibility test.
Last year, during the World Championships in New Delhi, Khelif failed to meet the International Boxing Association’s (IBA) eligibility criteria. And because of that Khelif was disqualified hours before her gold medal bout.
The IBA cited ‘elevated levels of testosterone’ for disqualifying Khelif last year.
Khelif was disqualified from the world championships last year but deemed eligible to box in the women’s competition in Paris along with Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting.
They have been allowed to compete in Paris by the IOC task force, which has run the past two Olympic boxing tournaments.
The IOC on Tuesday defended its decision to allow the two to compete, stating that all participants in the women’s Olympic boxing category in Paris comply with competition eligibility rules.
“Everyone competing in the women’s category is complying with the competition eligibility rules,” IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said. ”They are women in their passports and it’s stated that this is the case, that they are female.”
In recent years, various sports organizations have updated their gender rules.
World Aquatics, World Athletics, and the International Cycling Union have all made adjustments. The track body, in particular, tightened rules affecting athletes with differences in sex development (DSD) last year.
However, the IOC confirmed that its eligibility criteria for the boxers were based on the guidelines in effect during the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
The IOC is in charge of boxing in Paris because the IBA has been banned from the past two Olympics becuase of years of governance problems, a lack of financial transparency and many perceived instances of corruption in judging and refereeing.
The IOC has revoked the Olympic status of the IBA, which is controlled by president Umar Kremlev, who is Russian.
The IBA has since lost more than three dozen members who have formed a new group called World Boxing, which hopes to be recognized by the IOC as the sport’s governing body ahead of the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Earlier Thursday, Algeria’s Olympic Committee (COA) condemned what it called “malicious and unethical attacks directed against our distinguished athlete, Imane Khelif, by certain foreign media”.
The COA hit out at “lies” that were “completely unfair”.
“We are all with you, Imane,” it added. “The whole nation supports you.”
Khelif and Carini only a few punch exchanges before the Italian, in an extremely unusual instance, abandoned the bout.
Citing intense pain in her nose after the opening punches, a tearful Carini quit but Khelif’s win has shook the Paris Olympics.
Khelif has been in the spotlight at Olympics as she had earlier failed a gender eligibility test.
Last year, during the World Championships in New Delhi, Khelif failed to meet the International Boxing Association’s (IBA) eligibility criteria. And because of that Khelif was disqualified hours before her gold medal bout.
The IBA cited ‘elevated levels of testosterone’ for disqualifying Khelif last year.
Khelif was disqualified from the world championships last year but deemed eligible to box in the women’s competition in Paris along with Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting.
They have been allowed to compete in Paris by the IOC task force, which has run the past two Olympic boxing tournaments.
The IOC on Tuesday defended its decision to allow the two to compete, stating that all participants in the women’s Olympic boxing category in Paris comply with competition eligibility rules.
“Everyone competing in the women’s category is complying with the competition eligibility rules,” IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said. ”They are women in their passports and it’s stated that this is the case, that they are female.”
In recent years, various sports organizations have updated their gender rules.
World Aquatics, World Athletics, and the International Cycling Union have all made adjustments. The track body, in particular, tightened rules affecting athletes with differences in sex development (DSD) last year.
However, the IOC confirmed that its eligibility criteria for the boxers were based on the guidelines in effect during the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
The IOC is in charge of boxing in Paris because the IBA has been banned from the past two Olympics becuase of years of governance problems, a lack of financial transparency and many perceived instances of corruption in judging and refereeing.
The IOC has revoked the Olympic status of the IBA, which is controlled by president Umar Kremlev, who is Russian.
The IBA has since lost more than three dozen members who have formed a new group called World Boxing, which hopes to be recognized by the IOC as the sport’s governing body ahead of the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Earlier Thursday, Algeria’s Olympic Committee (COA) condemned what it called “malicious and unethical attacks directed against our distinguished athlete, Imane Khelif, by certain foreign media”.
The COA hit out at “lies” that were “completely unfair”.
“We are all with you, Imane,” it added. “The whole nation supports you.”
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