'What are the IOC doing?': Boxers who failed gender tests allowed to compete at Olympics

Two boxers, Imane Khelif of Algeria and Lin Yu‑ting of Chinese Taipei (Taiwan), were disqualified from the 2023 women’s world championships, but have been allowed to compete at the 2024 Olympic Games.

Khelif and Lin both failed testosterone and gender eligibility tests at the championships, also held in Paris, per The Guardian.

The International Boxing Association, who hosted the championships, disqualified the two boxers after DNA tests, “proved they had XY chromosomes and were thus excluded”.

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The IBA claimed they based the decision, “following a comprehensive review and was intended to uphold the fairness and integrity of the competition”.

The IBA is not involved in the running of the Olympic boxing, with the IOC using less strict gender rules than in other competitions, and indeed at the last Olympics in Tokyo, per The Guardian.

IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said, “Obviously I am not going to comment on individuals,” in response to questions about the pair, before adding, “That’s really invidious and unfair. But I would just say that everyone competing in the women’s category is complying with the competition eligibility rules.”

Adams did admit there were complications around the decision, with complications around puberty muddying the waters further.

Adams’ statement continued, “As for the question about testosterone and going through male puberty, we issued a framework document to all the federations. And everyone would love to have a single answer: yes, no, yes, no. But it’s incredibly complex.”

Northern Irishman Barry McGuigan, a former boxing world champion, described the decision as “shocking” and called the decision to allow them to compete, “demonstrably unfair and dangerous – what are the IOC doing?”

Mark Otega, the Head of Research PBC on Prime, has made a statement in support of the boxers, claiming, “They [the two boxers] were not born males who transitioned to female,” instead they are “intersex,” who, “comprise two percent of the population,” which perhaps only makes the decision more complicated.

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