JK Rowling screamed ‘brutal injustice’, multiple half-baked reports were published on websites and even broadcast on news bulletins, and before we knew it a man had beaten up a woman inside a boxing ring.
The power of social media is currently in the spotlight, particularly in the U.K. where hateful riots, in part instigated from the spread of misinformation online, are dominating the headlines. It’s admittedly a stretch to compare those riots and their consequences to what’s happening to Algeria’s Imane Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-Ting, two female boxers competing at the Paris Olympics, yet the widespread abuse they’ve faced after their gender was questioned has undeniably been fuelled by online opinion.
On July 29, a video was shared on X of Khelif in action two years ago which described her as a “man cheating in the Olympics.” It wasn’t long before that untruth paraded as fact when similar posts followed, alongside news articles, some inaccurately describing Khelif as transgender.
On July 31, the day before 25-year-old Khelif competed against Italy’s Angela Carini in a three-round welterweight contest, the International Boxing Association (IBA) – not involved in the Paris Games – released a statement highlighting that in 2023 the organization had disqualified Khelif and Lin during the amateur World Boxing Championships in New Delhi due to “their failure to meet eligibility criteria for participating in the women’s competition.”
“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,” part of the statement read. “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.”
The testing was first conducted in May 2022 when a laboratory in Istanbul had found “inconsistencies”, and again at the world championships in March 2023. It is unknown why the boxers were allowed to compete in seven bouts at those championships – one of which included victory for Khelif over Russia’s Azalia Amineva and others in which Lin had secured a medal – if inconsistencies had previously been discovered.
At the time of this writing, the IBA retained confidentiality regarding the tests though Chris Roberts, their chief executive, did divulge on Thursday (August 1) that XY male chromosomes were found in “both cases”. When asked to provide further details by Prime Time’s Jack McCarron, the IBA said it had no further comments to make.
Though there is no suggestion that the blood and swab tests did not occur, a failure to legitimize the statement with further detail has made some observers view it as little more than telling tales.
The IBA, formerly known as AIBA, is a prominent governing body in amateur boxing, albeit one with waning authority after several years of questionable conduct.
In 2020, current president Umar Kremlev of Russia succeeded Gafur Rakhimov – described by the US Department of the Treasury as one of Uzbekistan’s “leading criminals” and “an important person involved in the heroin trade.” Rakhimov followed the controversial figure of CK Wu, a man widely blamed for their descent, into presidency.
Kremlev’s appointment came one year after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) withdrew its recognition for the IBA due to concerns raised involving corruption, rigged decisions and financial mismanagement that had occurred during the 2016 Games in Rio. In 2023, after lengthy examinations of the IBA in which they were accused of “open intimidation towards the IOC”, the IOC voted to expel the IBA – who were campaigning for reinstatement – from the Olympic movement, the first time in the Games’ 129-year history such action had been taken against a governing body.
“We highly value the sport of boxing but unfortunately we have an extremely serious problem with the IBA because of their governance,” said IOC president Thomas Bach. “We believe the boxers fully deserve to be governed by an international federation with integrity and transparency.” Of the concerns over fair officiating, financial stability and governance, the IOC director general, Christophe De Kepper, added: “The IOC has constantly and patiently tried to help in the three areas of concern. There has been a constant lack of drastic revolution throughout the many years. It is a situation of no return. The only conclusion is to withdraw recognition.”
In their response, the IBA suggested legal action and asked why the IOC had failed to recognize the actions of Wu, who was in charge at the time of the 2016 Olympics.
“We cannot conceal the fact that today’s decision is catastrophic for global boxing and blatantly contradicts the IOC’s claims of acting in the best interests of boxing and athletes,” it said.
The conflict between the IOC and the IBA, and the subsequent development of World Boxing – a rebel organization gaining significant traction as a viable alternative to IBA, could be described as typical for the sport of boxing. In the professional code, bad management is cited as the reason why the World Boxing Council (WBC) was formed in the 1960s as a rival to the established World Boxing Association (WBA). That theme can also explain the formation of the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and the World Boxing Organization (WBO) two decades later. Chaos has been a frequent consequence of so many chiefs.
On August 1, the day after the IBA statement regarding gender eligibility predictably pricked the attention of all boxers in Paris (and JK Rowling), a visibly distraught Carini turned away from Khelif in an act of surrender 46 seconds after the sound of the opening bell. “I have never felt a punch like this,” said the Italian afterwards. “After the second punch, after years of experience, I felt a strong pain in the nose.”
It was the sixth time in 54 recorded bouts (which include nine losses) that Khelif had managed to win a contest inside the scheduled distance.
Beforehand, Rowling tweeted to her 14.2m followers: “What will it take to end this insanity? A female boxer with life-altering injuries? A female boxer killed?”
Afterwards the author added: “This isn’t sport. From the bullying cheat in red [Khelif] all the way up to the organisers who allowed this to happen, this is men revelling in their power over women.”
The most surprising tweet was still to come. Alongside a photograph of Khelif smiling after being declared the winner, Rowling stated: “The smirk of a male who knows he’s protected by a misogynist sporting establishment enjoying the distress of a woman he’s just punched in the head, and whose life’s ambition he’s just shattered.”
Khelif (like Lin) was born female and remains so. Both boxers have competed throughout their careers as women with both encountering defeats along the way. That fact shouldn’t take away concern over the physical advantages they may hold over their rivals, however. The XY karyotype in both Khelif and Lin that has been suggested by the IBA tests would mean they have male-typical biology, the finer details of which warrant further investigation.
IOC spokesperson Mark Adams was confident that both boxers were eligible for entry but admitted the findings of the IBA were effectively ignored.
“Everyone competing in the women’s category is complying with the competition eligibility rules. They are women in their passports and it is stated that is the case,” he said. “They are eligible by the rules of federation, which was set in 2016, and which worked for Tokyo too, to compete as women, which is what they are.”
When asked on Monday (August 5) why the IBA tests had not been considered when approving Khelif and Lin as competitors, Adams said: “The source from which they came was not credible and the basis for the questions was not credible, therefore the tests are not credible… I am assuming, for that reason, there was no consideration of whether they were correct or not correct.”
Surely there should have been.
Mauricio Sulaiman, the WBC president who has long voiced his concern for the management of amateur boxing, said: “The main conflict has been the media war between the IOC and IBA… They have taken center stage, by attacking each other, in a clear power struggle that will not solve the core issue.
“It is not the fault of Imane and Lin, who are suffering attacks, scorn and derision. Everything is being mixed up, from science and medicine, homophobia, sexism, human rights, laws, rules, and even abandonment of common sense to attack them.”
Khelif has since progressed to the final which is due to take place on August 8, winning two further bouts by decision. Emotional scenes followed the victories, the weight of the toxic controversy obvious.
“I send a message to all the people of the world to uphold the Olympic principles according to the Olympic Charter,” she said before winning her semifinal on Tuesday (August 6). “To refrain from bullying all athletes because this thing has effects, massive effects. It can destroy people. It can kill people’s thoughts, spirit and mind. And it can divide people. And because of that, I ask them to refrain from bullying.”
It remains undecided if boxing will retain its position as an Olympic sport in 2028. Since taking control of Olympic boxing the IOC have watered down the product by removing certain weight classes and its visibility has undeniably suffered – until now. This latest episode seems unlikely to heighten their appetite for a dangerous combat sport which is in dire need of consistent and transparent governance.
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