OAN Staff James Meyers
10:42 AM – Thursday, August 1, 2024
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif’s first fight at the 2024 Paris Olympics stirred up much controversy.
Khelif, 25, who previously failed gender eligibility tests at the 2023 World Championships, forced the Italian opponent, Angela Carini, to quit her match just 46 seconds into their opening-round fight on Thursday.
In relation to the short fight, Carini retreated to her corner after being hit twice by Khelif. The female boxer was openly left in tears and frustration.
At one point, the Italian even yelled out “this is unjust!” at her corner. She then slammed her headgear in the ring as the match in the 66-kilogram division was called off.
As Khelif went to shake Carini’s hand, she brushed the Algerian boxer off and then ripped her hand away from the referee as Khelif’s hand was raised as the winner.
“I’m used to suffering,” Carini said, fighting back tears. “I’ve never taken a punch like that, it’s impossible to continue. I’m nobody to say it’s illegal.”
“I got into the ring to fight. But I didn’t feel like it anymore after the first minute. I started to feel a strong pain in my nose. I didn’t give up, but a punch hurt too much and so I said enough. I’m leaving with my head held high.”
Additionally, the Italian fighter’s coach, Emmanuel Razini, told the media that he was unsure if Carini’s nose was broken and that she was warned not to take on the fight.
“Many people in Italy tried to call and tell her: ‘Don’t go please: It’s a man, it’s dangerous for you,” Renzini said.
The latest controversy comes after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) defended the decision to let Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting compete after both were disqualified from the world championships.
“All athletes participating in the boxing tournament of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 comply with the competition’s eligibility and entry regulations, as well as all applicable medical regulations,” the IOC said in a statement before the Games were set to kick-off.
The IOC has appointed officials to run boxing at two straight Summer Games. They announced on Monday that the tournament rules for the Paris Games are “descended from” those in place eight years ago at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
Officials who were picked to run the qualifying and finals tournaments for Paris worked “to restrict amendments to minimize the impact on athletes’ preparation and guaranteeing consistency between Olympic Games,” according to the IOC.
It has not been confirmed whether Khelif is a biological man who identifies as a transgender woman or if the boxer is a biological woman with elevated levels of testosterone, which is called “hyperandrogenous.” According to the Cleveland Clinic, this condition “affects about 5% to 10% of the population.”
Last year, South Africa’s 2-time Olympic champion runner, Caster Semenya, told CNN that even though she is a biological female, her levels of testosterone were too high to compete with other women, so she was forced to take testosterone-reducing medication in order to compete internationally.
Khelif’s home country of Algeria “criminalizes same-sex sexual activity between men and between women. Sentences include a maximum penalty of three years’ imprisonment and a fine,” according to the Human Dignity Trust Foundation.
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