‘She is female’: Chinese Taipei boxing’s head coach backs boxer Lin Yu-Ting under the biological spotlight in Paris

The issue of biology in sport has again become an issue at the Paris Olympic Games with two female boxers the latest athletes to be questioned over their legitimacy to fight as women. But a coach of one of the boxers says categorically there is no doubt.

Chinese Taipei’s head coach has slammed speculation world champion boxer Lin Yu-Ting is fighting illegally as a female and should be kicked out of the Paris Olympics.

Speaking exclusively with News Corp Australia, Chinese Taipei’s Tseng Tzu-Chiang has defended the 28-year-old’s right to fight in Paris amid biological bona fides surrounding Yu-Ting and a second boxer, Algeria’s Imane Khelif.

Khelif is on a collision course to fight Australia’s Marissa Williamson Polhman in the 66kg class, while Yu-Ting is in the same 57kg category as Bankstown’s Tina Rahimi.

Controversy has also surrounded Algerian fighter Khelif Imane. Picture: Elif Ozturk/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Australian boxing legend Jeff Fenech has lashed the IOC for allowing the pair to fight with women in Paris after they were disqualified from the world championships last year for being deemed biologically male.

Fenech fears a female could suffer brain damage or, worse, death if they were punched heavily by a male.

In March 2023, Yu-Ting failed a sex test and was stripped of a bronze medal from the International Boxing Association (IBA) at last year’s world championships in New Delhi.

Jeff Fenech has been very critical of the decision to allow both fighters to fight as women. Picture: Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

Amid that biological brouhaha, the IOC has given the green light to Khelif and Yu-Ting, who will fight on Thursday and Friday respectively during the 2024 Olympics tournament at North Paris Arena.

Tzu-Chiang has coached Yu-Ting for 15 years and is furious at suggestions the two-time world championships gold medallist should be banned from the Paris Games.

“She is female. We no cheating,” Tzu-Chiang said in broken English.

“We just following the Olympic committee rules.

“I don’t know what is the problem.

“There is no problem. She is woman.

“Medical, no problems.”

Chinese Taipei head boxing coach Tseng Tzu-Chiang. Picture: Supplied

Current Australian Olympian Williamson Pohlman fought Khelif at the Eindhoven Cup in May, losing to the Algerian in the final.

Former Aussie Olympian Skye Nicolson, now a world champion as a pro, lost to Lin Yu-Ting in the 2019 world championships.

Tzu-Chiang insists Chinese Taipei authorities have gone through the necessary channels to ensure Yu-Ting is allowed to compete in Paris.

“We check and IOC says everything is OK,” he said.

“She is fighting (previously) at Asian Games, World Championships, so I don’t understand why there are these problems with Olympics.

“She fight her (Australia’s Nicolson).

“We don’t know why people talking about anything, but we are following the IOC.

“The IOC is running the Olympic Games, nobody else.”

Australia’s head coach Santiago Nieva refused to be critical of the IOC, saying the green-and-gold camp will fight any opponent on a tournament card.

The respected Nieva says the Australians are aware of both Khelif and Yu-Ting and says neither are so supremely dominant in women’s boxing as to ring alarm bells.

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“I have spoken to the IOC on this issue, so I have an idea of it, but I won’t go into those conversations in the media,” said Nieva, who has also worked in Sweden, India and his home country Argentina.

“They have been cleared by the IOC and whoever they put in front of us we will fight them.

“Our girl, Marissa, fought the Algerian in the Netherlands, she is a good boxer but she is not unbeatable and neither is the Chinese Taipei boxer who actually lost at the Asian games.

“Marissa fought the Algerian in the final. Skye Nicolson has fought the Chinese Taipei boxer.

“Marissa lost the final in the Netherlands but it was a normal fight.

“The Algerian was good but she’s not knocking everybody out.

“I have not seen a man go in and slaughter other women boxers with an advantage, I have not seen that.

“I have no real opinion on this gender stuff, I’m not a medical expert.

“The IOC is there and we have to trust them. We will fight whatever opponent is put in front of us.”

Australian head coach Santiago Nieva training with Tyla McDonald. Picture: Supplied

Asked if women with high testosterone levels is a grey area for all Olympic sports, Nieva said: “It is very difficult.

“You want to be inclusive but you also want to be fair.

“What I do know is it’s a very difficult area to come up with the legislation for all the sports that is fair to everybody that everybody will be happy with.

“Every international federation has to tackle these issues and hopefully they get it right.

“Of course, you don’t want men competing with women with an unfair advantage.

“I guess there are more qualified people than me to handle these issues to make it fair.”

Fenech warned the IOC is playing with fire and could witness a tragedy in the ring.

“What has this world come to,” Hall of Fame great Fenech said.

“Listen, I’m all for women’s boxing, but do people understand the damage that can be done if men fight women?

“Put Mike Tyson in the ring with a female heavyweight and she will end up not just concussed, but with brain damage.

“My message is if you allow this to happen – watch out. Men and women are built differently.

“If I hit a woman outside the ring, I would end up in jail.

“It’s madness.”

Originally published as ‘She is female’: Chinese Taipei boxing’s head coach backs boxer Lin Yu-Ting under the biological spotlight in Paris