Childhood photos of boxer at centre of Olympic gender scandal emerge

This is everything we know so far about the boxing gender scandal at the Olympics, as childhood photos emerge of Algeria’s Imane Khelif.

A scandal has engulfed the boxing at the Paris Olympics after an Algerian woman boxer who previously failed a gender eligibility test stopped her opponent after 46 seconds.

This is what we know about the scrap, which has spread far outside the ring but is more complicated than it first appears with even Olympic officials admitting it’s a “minefield”.

Who’s involved?

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif, 25, boxing in the 66kg category, and 28-year-old Taiwan’s Lin Yu Ting, fighting at 57kg.

The row erupted after Khelif won her bout against Italy’s Angela Carini in just 46 seconds with two strong punches to the Italian’s nose that started bleeding profusely.

It continued when Lin towered over Sitora Turdibekova from Uzbekistan and easily defeated her in a unanimous decision win.

Both Khelif and Lin were disqualified from the 2023 world championships in New Delhi run by the International Boxing Association (IBA) after failing to meet “eligibility criteria”.

However, both competed in the Tokyo Olympics and were cleared to fight in Paris.

Imane Khelif. (Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images)

What was the ‘eligibility’ test?

This is where things start to get murky. The IBA said in a statement the athletes “did not undergo a testosterone examination but were subject to a separate and recognised test”. However, the “specifics” of this test “remain confidential”.

Lin did not appeal the decision, notes the IBA. Khelif did take her case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) but then withdrew the appeal.

The IBA said the test “conclusively indicated” that both failed to meet required eligibility criteria and had “a competitive advantage over other female competitors”.

At the time, Khelif said she had been told she had “characteristics that mean I can’t box with women”, claiming she was victim of a “big conspiracy”.

Khelif’s profile on the Paris 2024 media information site initially said she had been disqualified from the world championships over “elevated levels of testosterone” but this was later removed.

International Olympic Committee spokesman Mark Adams said it was a “fact” that this was the reason but said the IBA had made a “sudden and arbitrary decision” to disqualify the boxers.

Taiwan's boxer Lin Yu-Tang did not appeal the IBA’s decision.

Adams said the IOC’s own criteria was the gender indicated on the boxers’ passports but acknowledged that it’s “not a black-and-white issue”.

Measuring testosterone is unsatisfactory, he told reporters. “There are many women with higher levels than men so the idea that a testosterone test is some kind of magic bullet is not true,” said Adams.

Is this a transgender issue?

No. Neither boxer is known to identify as transgender and the IOC has lashed out at “incorrect reporting” to that effect.

“I should make this absolutely clear to everyone: this is not a transgender issue. These women have been competing in competitions for many years,” said Adams.

He warned about turning the scandal into a “witch-hunt”, adding: “This involves real people and we’re talking about real people’s lives here.”

What do we know about Khelif’s childhood?

A photo has emerged of Imane Khelif (right) as a child.

Khelif endured a tough upbringing, coming from a “very poor family”.

“I happened to sell bread in the street,” she told UNICEF in an interview earlier this year.

“I collected dishes and other objects to earn money and to be able to move around because I came from a very poor family.”

She loved playing football as a child, but was encouraged to take up boxing because of her physical gifts.

“It was pure chance, I never imagined one day that I would become a boxer,” she said.

“I have always loved football and I played it in my little village. My father always preferred football to boxing. But I was very good at sports in my school and my teacher encouraged me to become a boxer since I had good physical qualities and he was right.”

But her family needed some convincing. “I come from a conservative region and family,” she said. “Boxing was a sport dedicated only to men.”

Imane Khelif (right in first photo) endured a tough upbringing.

Lin attributes questions over her gender to her short hairstyle and height (she is 1.75m tall). “If I wore my hair long, I would have to spend too much time tending to it,” she told CNA, Taiwan’s semi-official news agency.

What is going on between the IOC and IBA?

The two athletes appear to have become caught in a slugfest between the IBA and the IOC.

The IOC stripped the IBA of responsibility for organising the Paris Games over financial, ethical and governance issues.

The “Paris 2024 Boxing Unit”, a special body set up by the IOC, is running the Olympic competition and has less stringent eligibility criteria than the IBA.

“The IOC’s differing regulations on these matters, in which IBA is not involved, raise serious questions about both competitive fairness and athletes’ safety,” jabbed the IBA.

The IOC punched back. “As with previous Olympic boxing competitions, the gender and age of the athletes are based on their passport,” said the organisation.

“Every person has the right to practise sport without discrimination.”

Imane Khelif (in red) punches Angela Carini of Italy. (Photo by Fabio Bozzani/Anadolu via Getty Images)

What was the reaction?

Fierce and immediate. Politicians and celebrities started raining down shots on social media within an hour of the bout finishing.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said the fight was “not on an equal footing.”

US presidential candidate Donald Trump declared on his Truth Social network: “I WILL KEEP MEN OUT OF WOMEN’S SPORTS!”

His running mate JD Vance described the bout as a “grown man pummelling a woman in a boxing match,” adding: “This is disgusting, and all of our leaders should condemn it.”

Harry Potter author JK Rowling said on X, formerly Twitter, that the Paris Games would be “forever tarnished by the brutal injustice done to Carini”.

Neither boxer has weighed in, Khelif saying just: “It’s always satisfying to win in such an important competition, but I remain focused on my goal of a medal.”

What’s next?

Khelif fights Hungary’s Anna Luca Hamori in the quarter-final on Saturday. Lin’s next fight is against Bulgaria’s Svetlana Staneva on Sunday. As for the controversy, that rumbles on.

- with AFP