Italian Angela Carini surrendered 46 seconds into her Olympic boxing match Thursday morning after her biologically male opponent Algerian Imane Khelif delivered her a devastating blow to the face. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) before the match called it a "witch-hunt" for critics to express concern over the fact that biological males who “identify” as women may compete against actual women in the Olympic Games.Legacy media outlets continue to refer to 25-year-old Khelif as a “she.” However, the fact remains that the biologically male Algerian athlete will go on to the next round of the women’s boxing competition, while Carini will go home empty-handed..Hours before Khelif and Carini's fight, the International Boxing Association (IBA) released a statement clarifying Khelif was banned from competing in the 2023 World Boxing Championships, not from testing testosterone levels, as was previously reported, but due to the presence of XY (male) hormones. .Footage shows Khelif landing a powerful punch on Carini’s face during the welterweight contest, after which she turned and told the ref she was out. “It hurt like hell,” Carini told game officials, per the Daily Mail.Khelif was then declared the winner. The ref stood between them and raised the male’s arm to signal the winner of the women’s boxing match. .“I went into the ring to fight. I didn't give up, but a punch hurt too much and so I said enough. I'm leaving with my head held high,” Carini told reporters afterwards. . On Italian television, Carini dedicated the match to her father, who always has supported her and encouraged her as an athlete, like in cycling, when she "sees the last kilometer, to pedal even harder." "And so I did," she said. "Until the end. I fought with blood in my eyes."“I wanted this victory at all costs. Just for my father.” .IBA on Wednesday said in a statement their decision to allow Khelif and male Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting, who was also disqualified from the World Championships on account of testosterone levels, to fight as women was made “after a meticulous review.” The two athletes did not undergo testosterone exams this time — instead they were subjected to an unspecified “separate and recognized test,” the Daily Mail reported. Khelif and Lin were both allowed to compete in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, however. .A panel of IOC media officials took questions ahead of the women's boxing match, where they were asked "what do you say to the female athletes" who face powerful male athletes in the boxing ring who have an "unfair advantage because of heir high testosterone levels.""These athletes are entirely eligible. they are women on their passports," said IOC spokesman Mark Adams. "I actually think its not helpful to start stigmatizing people that take part in sport like this." "But they are women. They competed in Tokyo.""I think we all have the responsibility by the way to try to dial down this, and not turn it into some kind of witch-hunt. These are regular athletes who have competed for many years in boxing. They are entirely eligible. Women on their passports. And that is enough said for me." .Meanwhile, 2021 Olympic gold medalist in boxing Ireland's Kellie Harrington said she refuses to compete against biological male boxers at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
Italian Angela Carini surrendered 46 seconds into her Olympic boxing match Thursday morning after her biologically male opponent Algerian Imane Khelif delivered her a devastating blow to the face. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) before the match called it a "witch-hunt" for critics to express concern over the fact that biological males who “identify” as women may compete against actual women in the Olympic Games.Legacy media outlets continue to refer to 25-year-old Khelif as a “she.” However, the fact remains that the biologically male Algerian athlete will go on to the next round of the women’s boxing competition, while Carini will go home empty-handed..Hours before Khelif and Carini's fight, the International Boxing Association (IBA) released a statement clarifying Khelif was banned from competing in the 2023 World Boxing Championships, not from testing testosterone levels, as was previously reported, but due to the presence of XY (male) hormones. .Footage shows Khelif landing a powerful punch on Carini’s face during the welterweight contest, after which she turned and told the ref she was out. “It hurt like hell,” Carini told game officials, per the Daily Mail.Khelif was then declared the winner. The ref stood between them and raised the male’s arm to signal the winner of the women’s boxing match. .“I went into the ring to fight. I didn't give up, but a punch hurt too much and so I said enough. I'm leaving with my head held high,” Carini told reporters afterwards. . On Italian television, Carini dedicated the match to her father, who always has supported her and encouraged her as an athlete, like in cycling, when she "sees the last kilometer, to pedal even harder." "And so I did," she said. "Until the end. I fought with blood in my eyes."“I wanted this victory at all costs. Just for my father.” .IBA on Wednesday said in a statement their decision to allow Khelif and male Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting, who was also disqualified from the World Championships on account of testosterone levels, to fight as women was made “after a meticulous review.” The two athletes did not undergo testosterone exams this time — instead they were subjected to an unspecified “separate and recognized test,” the Daily Mail reported. Khelif and Lin were both allowed to compete in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, however. .A panel of IOC media officials took questions ahead of the women's boxing match, where they were asked "what do you say to the female athletes" who face powerful male athletes in the boxing ring who have an "unfair advantage because of heir high testosterone levels.""These athletes are entirely eligible. they are women on their passports," said IOC spokesman Mark Adams. "I actually think its not helpful to start stigmatizing people that take part in sport like this." "But they are women. They competed in Tokyo.""I think we all have the responsibility by the way to try to dial down this, and not turn it into some kind of witch-hunt. These are regular athletes who have competed for many years in boxing. They are entirely eligible. Women on their passports. And that is enough said for me." .Meanwhile, 2021 Olympic gold medalist in boxing Ireland's Kellie Harrington said she refuses to compete against biological male boxers at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
