Two female boxers meet Paris Olympic rules after world championship gender test issue – NBC 7 San Diego

Two female boxers who were disqualified from the 2023 world championships in Paris after being found to have failed gender-specific qualification tests have met all requirements to fight at the games, the IOC said on Monday.

Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan and Imane Khelif of Algeria are competing in their second Summer Olympics. Both failed to win medals at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.

“All athletes participating in the boxing tournament at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games will comply with the rules on eligibility and participation in the competition, as well as all applicable medical regulations,” the International Olympic Committee said in a statement.

Lin, 28, is a two-time world championship gold medalist, while Khelif, 25, won silver at the 2022 tournament.

Both were barred from competing in New Delhi last year at the world championships organized by the International Boxing Association, which did not participate in the Olympics before the Tokyo Games.

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The differing status of Lin and Khelifa at the Olympics and world championships follows a long-running dispute between the IOC and the Russian-led IBA over alleged governance and integrity failures, as well as reliance on funding from state energy company Gazprom.

The IOC has named officials to run boxing competitions at the next two Summer Olympics and admitted on Monday that the rules for the Paris tournament are “based” on those in place at the Rio de Janeiro Games eight years ago.

The IOC said boxing officials selected to run the qualifications and finals in Paris sought to “limit the number of changes in order to minimise the impact on athletes’ preparations and ensure consistency between the Olympic Games”.

The IOC’s database of some 10,700 athletes competing in Paris details the experiences of both boxers at the 2023 World Championships.

Khelif was disqualified “hours before her gold medal fight” against a Chinese opponent “because her elevated testosterone levels did not meet the qualifying criteria.”

According to the IOC database, Lin “was stripped of her bronze medal (by the IBA) after she failed to meet eligibility requirements based on the results of a biochemical test.”

Khelif will face Italian Angela Carini in the 66-kilogram category at the North Paris Arena on Thursday. Lin, who received a bye in the first round as the top seed in the 57-kilogram category, will fight her first bout on Friday in the round of 16.

The boxing medal fights in Paris will be held on the Roland Garros courts.