Gold and satisfaction for Imane Khelif. The boxer from Algeria defies the controversy surrounding her right to compete in the Olympic final and wins gold. There is huge applause from the stands.
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif withstood the pressure caused by a heated gender debate in the Olympic final and won gold. The 25-year-old won the welterweight title against Chinese world champion Yang Liu by unanimous decision and became Olympic champion.
“God willing, this crisis will culminate in a gold medal, that would be the best answer,” Khelif recently said. In the final fight on Court Philippe Chatrier at the Stade Roland Garros, she was also enthusiastically cheered and applauded in front of around 15,000 spectators. After the verdict was announced, Khelif performed her celebratory dance around her own axis in the middle of the ring and was then carried on the shoulders of an Algerian coach to the thunderous cheers of the fans.
Controversy over participation
There is a heated debate about the right to compete surrounding Khelif and Lin Yu-ting (28) from Taiwan, who will fight for gold in the featherweight division against Poland’s Julia Szeremeta on Saturday. This debate goes far beyond sport and also reaches the highest political circles. Both boxers were excluded from the 2023 World Championships after gender tests that have not yet been explained in detail by the IBA, which is no longer recognized by the International Olympic Committee. According to the IBA, both did not meet the required participation criteria and had “competitive advantages compared to other female participants.”
The IOC called it an “arbitrary decision without due process” and allowed Khelif and Lin to take part in Paris. The gender stated in the passport is decisive for admission to competitions in many sports, was one reason given. The IOC warned of a “culture war”. The controversial Russian IBA President Umar Kremlev criticized that the current debate was “destroying” sport.
Source: Stern
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