By Valerie Richardson - The Washington Times - Friday, August 9, 2024

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif, whose sex has been disputed, won Olympic gold Friday by defeating Chinese fighter Yang Liu in the women’s welterweight boxing final.

Unresolved are questions about whether the International Olympic Committee should have allowed Khelif to compete in the 2024 Paris Olympics after being disqualified for failing a sex test at last year’s women’s world championships.

Khelif, 25, saluted the crowd and did a victory dance in the ring after winning the unanimous judge’s decision in the 145 lb. (66 kg) category, becoming the first Algerian to capture an Olympic medal in women’s boxing.

The win drew cheers from Algerians who hailed the fighter as a national hero while unleashing frustration among advocates for single-sex women’s sports.

“BREAKING: Imane Khelif (XY) dominated World Champion Lang Liu (XX) to win an Olympic gold medal,” said All-American swimmer Riley Gaines, host of OutKick’s “Gaines on Girls” podcast. “Let me repeat that: a MALE has taken a WOMAN’S Olympic gold.”

Gaines added on X: “This is what they call this ‘progress.’ It’s the ultimate betrayal of fairness, safety, and women by @iocmedia.”

The Independent Women’s Forum said the IOC “has allowed Khelif to sail through every round barbarously beating the world’s top female boxers — and now is rewarded with a top podium gold medal.”

Hours before the match, IOC President Thomas Bach defended Khelif and Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan, who also failed a sex test last year, insisting that “these two are women.”

“It is not as easy as some in this culture war may want to portray it, that XX or XY is a clear distinction between men and women,” Mr. Bach said at a Friday press conference. “This is scientifically not true anymore. And therefore these two are women and they have the right to participate in the women’s competition.”

Khelif and Lin became a dominant story at the Paris games after the International Boxing Association confirmed that they were disqualified from the 2023 Women’s World Championships after blood tests showed they failed to meet the association’s eligibility criteria.

Two months later, the IBA board of directors decided that “IBA competitions will be conducted only between male athletes and between female athletes.”

The association also drew up a policy on athletes with Differences of Sexual Development 46, XY, a condition in which individuals are born with internal testes and ambiguous genitalia, but ultimately undergo male puberty and produce male-level testosterone.

“Participation of DSD athletes [‘differences of sexual development’] in boxing competitions were found dangerous for [the] health and security of the boxers,” the IBA said.

The IOC dropped the association last year as its boxing authority over governance, financial and judging-integrity issues.

Speculation is rife that Khelif has the DSD 46, XY condition, although the boxer has not commented on the gender scrutiny.

In an interview Sunday with SNTV, Khelif called for an end to the “bullying” of athletes, referring to the social-media outrage.

“I send a message to all the people of the world to uphold the Olympic principles and the Olympic Charter, to refrain from bullying all athletes, because this has effects, massive effects,” Khelif said in Arabic, as translated by The Associated Press. “It can destroy people, it can kill people’s thoughts, spirit and mind. It can divide people. And because of that, I ask them to refrain from bullying.”

Lin is scheduled to fight Saturday for the women’s boxing championship in the 126 lb. (57 kg) category.

Two of Lin’s previous opponents made the “XX” sign with their fingers after losing their matches, a protest against athletes with XY chromosomes competing in women’s events.

• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.

Copyright © 2024 The Washington Times, LLC. Click here for reprint permission.

Please read our comment policy before commenting.