In the prelude to a women’s Olympic boxing match in which the winner, a transgender athlete, won in less than a minute, the International Boxing Association (IBA) released a statement on Wednesday, July 31, in which it demanded clarification on the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) decision to let two transgender, male to female, athletes compete in the match.

As background, the two transgender boxers the IOC let compete in women’s boxing are Lin Yu-Ting and Imane Khelif. Both were disqualified from competing in the IBA’s World Boxing Championships in New Helkhi in 2023, as they were not able to meet the eligibility requirements the IBA has set out for competing in women’s sports. The IBA said both Ting and Khelif had “competitive advantages” against those female boxers with whom they would be competing, and so didn’t let them compete.

Introducing the statement, the IBA began by saying, “As stated, the International Boxing Association (IBA) feels it appropriate at this prevalent time, to address recent media statements regarding those athletes Lin Yu-ting and Imane Khelif, particularly regarding their participation in the Paris Olympic Games 2024.”

Then, describing what happened in 2023, the IBA said, “On 24 March 2023, IBA disqualified athletes Lin Yu-ting and Imane Khelif from the IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships New Delhi 2023. This disqualification was a result of their failure to meet the eligibility criteria for participating in the women’s competition, as set and laid out in the IBA Regulations. This decision, made after a meticulous review, was extremely important and necessary to uphold the level of fairness and utmost integrity of the competition.”

The IBA added, “Point to note, the athletes did not undergo a testosterone examination but were subject to a separate and recognized test, whereby the specifics remain confidential. This test conclusively indicated that both athletes did not meet the required necessary eligibility criteria and were found to have competitive advantages over other female competitors.”

Then, after providing a few more details about each athlete, the IBA noted that its criteria for competing are stringent for a reason, competitive fairness in its matches and events, and it is concerned by the IOC’s decision to use other criteria for determining competition eligibility in the Paris Olympic Games.

It said, “Our Committees have rigorously reviewed and endorsed the decision made during the World Championships. While IBA remains committed to ensuring competitive fairness in all of our events, we express concern over the inconsistent application of eligibility criteria by other sporting organizations, including those overseeing the Olympic Games.”

Concluding, it noted that the IOC is potentially putting athletes at risk and indicated that answers and clarification ought be forthcoming. It said, “The IOC’s differing regulations on these matters, in which IBA is not involved, raise serious questions about both competitive fairness and athletes’ safety.” It then added, “For clarification on why the IOC permits athletes with competitive advantages to compete in their events, we urge interested parties to seek answers directly from the IOC.”

Watch Angela Carini, who competed against Khelif and backed out in less than a minute, speak about the matter here:

Featured image credit: By ALGÉRIE PRESSE SERVICE | وكالة الأنباء الجزائرية, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=134461048