Olympic Boxer Who 'Failed' Gender Eligibility Test Ends Fight In Seconds
There has been much debate regarding the eligibility of one particular Olympic boxer this year. Now, a staggering victory has earned her a seat in the quarter finals.
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00:00There has been much debate regarding the eligibility of one particular Olympic boxer this year.
00:05Now, a staggering victory has earned her a seat in the quarterfinals.
00:09Algerian boxer Iman Khalif defeated her first opponent, Italian Angela Carini, at the 2024
00:16Paris Olympics in their women's preliminary welterweight fight just 48 seconds into the
00:20match.
00:21Carini, who forfeited, was left on her knees in tears after the referee declared Khalif
00:26the winner.
00:27Carini, who noted her refusal to continue was not a political statement, said she made
00:31the decision to forfeit after feeling, quote, "...severe pain in her nose," according to
00:35CNN.
00:36She continued,
00:37"...and with the maturity of a boxer, I said, enough, because I didn't want to, I didn't
00:41want to.
00:42I couldn't finish the match."
00:43Khalif was previously barred from the 2023 Women's World Boxing Championships for failing
00:48an unspecified gender eligibility test that the International Boxing Association, or IBA,
00:54said found elevated testosterone levels and detected XY chromosomes.
00:58The same governing body let her play in the light welterweight division at the 2022 World
01:03Championships in Istanbul, where she took home a silver medal.
01:06Notably, the IBA has not disclosed any information about this particular test.
01:11As The New York Times reports,
01:12"...it is unclear what that test entailed or how they were deemed ineligible because
01:16of it."
01:17The swift defeat led to a flurry of debate over the match and its fairness, with The
01:21New York Post reporting that Karine yelled,
01:23"...this is unjust," after the fight ended.
01:25Yet, in the immediate aftermath of the tough loss, Karine did not appear to harbor any
01:29ill will toward her opponent, telling CNN,
01:31"...I am not here to judge or pass judgment."
01:34Instead, Karine pointed to the principles of perseverance instilled in her as the biggest
01:38cause of her sadness.
01:40She explained,
01:41"...I am heartbroken because I am a fighter.
01:43My father taught me to be a warrior.
01:45I have always stepped into the ring with honor and I have always served my country with loyalty.
01:49And this time I couldn't do it because I couldn't fight anymore.
01:52And so I ended the match."
01:53Still, she held her head high.
01:55She told reporters it's not her place to determine the fairness of the fight, and The Guardian
01:59reports she doesn't view the event as a, quote, "...defeat."
02:02She stated,
02:03"...For me, if you go in the ring, you have already won regardless of everything else.
02:07I'm not here to judge.
02:08It's not up to me to say if it's fair or not fair.
02:10I just did my job."
02:12Khalif's quick defeat of Karine and previous history of being barred from women's events
02:16sparked outcry from people on social media and in the news.
02:20Many believe that Khalif had an unfair advantage and should not have been allowed to participate
02:24in the Olympics despite her complying with all applicable medical regulations, according
02:29to the BBC.
02:30Notably, the IBA itself is no longer even recognized by the International Olympic Committee
02:35or IOC, so they're effectively barred from the Olympics themselves.
02:39For their part, the IOC has released a statement strongly advocating against the discrimination
02:43of any Olympic competitors and openly disavowing the methodology that led to Khalif's 2023
02:49disqualification.
02:50The organization's statement addressed the scrutiny directed at both Khalif and Taiwanese
02:54boxer Lin Yuting, who was also disqualified from the 2023 Women's Boxing World Championship
02:59for the same reason.
03:00The statement read, in part,
03:01"...the current aggression against these two athletes is based entirely on this arbitrary
03:06decision which was taken without any proper procedure, especially considering these athletes
03:10had been competing in top-level competition for many years."
03:14The IOC went on to proclaim,
03:15"...eligibility rules should not be changed during ongoing competition, and any rule change
03:20must follow appropriate processes and should be based on scientific evidence."
03:24"...that this is not a transgender issue.
03:27These women have been competing in competitions for many years."
03:30Khalif will go on to face Anna-Luca Hamouri, who told Reuters she is, quote, "...not scared,"
03:35and avoiding any social media and news stories around her opponent's previous match.
03:40For more UN videos visit www.un.org