In a statement, the IOC said that it would allow two disqualified boxers from last year’s world championship to fight in Paris.
Algeria’s Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-ting of China will be fighting in the 66-kilogram and 57-kilogram categories respectively.
The decision by the IOC to allow the two boxers to participate in the event will be met with condemnation from Barry McGuigan, a former world champion.
He criticized the organization for allowing these individuals to advance despite having XY chromosomes.
This was Imane Khelif fighting in Mexico in December 2022 against a Mexican woman.
Three months later, a test apparently revealed the XY chromosome.
Note the force of the punching.
Imane’s opponent that day, @BriandaTamara, said she certainly did:#OlympicGames #Boxing https://t.co/NvltUigCbT pic.twitter.com/8PhfGzJO2F
— teresa smith (@treesey) July 29, 2024
According to Umar Kremlev, the president of the IBA, the results of DNA tests excluded the boxers from the competition after it was revealed that they had XY chromosomes.
According to the Guardian, the IBA stated that it made the decision to exclude the two boxers due to a comprehensive review.
However, the organization was then banned from holding the Olympic tournament in Paris due to various controversies and governance issues.
The tournament has been handled by the IOC’s Paris 2024 boxing unit, which has reportedly adopted a more lenient approach compared to the IBA.
The IOC noted that the PBU used the regulations established for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics as its baseline.
The regulations were based on the Rio 2016 Olympic rules. According to the PBU, it tried to minimize the impact of the amendments on the athletes’ training.
However, the IOC noted that both boxers failed the gender eligibility test last year.
According to an internal system of the IOC, Khelif was disqualified before she faced off against China’s Yang Liu for the gold medal at the world championships in India in 2023.
The athlete’s elevated testosterone levels did not meet the criteria.
Lin failed to meet the requirements after a biochemical test was conducted, and her bronze medal was taken away, the IOC noted.
The Chinese athlete did not speak to the media about the situation.
However, a news agency reported that Khelif was the victim of a conspiracy after she was removed from the tournament.