Algerian boxer’s win at Olympics sparks gender debate
The controversy surrounding the boxer opens up the need to discuss, deliberate and understand issues around gender identity, sexual development, and fairness in sports.
On Thursday, Algerian boxer Imane Khelif beat Italian Angela Carini in 46 seconds in the opening bout of the 66 kg category at the ongoing Paris Olympics. Her win has sparked a huge gender row.
After the bout, Carini who was in tears, dropped down to her knees and was heard saying that it was unjust. She told Reuters, “I have always honoured my country with loyalty. This time I didn’t succeed because I couldn’t fight anymore.”
“I put an end to the match because after the second blow, after years of experience in the ring and a life of fighting, I felt a strong pain in my nose. I said ‘that's enough’ because ... I could not bring the match to an end. So I thought, maybe it’s better to put an end to the match.”
Khelif, six centimetres taller and who looked physically stronger than Carini, was under the spotlight last night when a number of social media users claimed she was “biologically male” and called her participation in women’s events “unfair”.
Author JK Rowling’s post on X fuelled the claims.
Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni also came to Carini’s defence and told Italian news agency ANSA that it was not a fight among equals and that athletes who have male genetic characteristics should not be admitted to women’s competitions.
Twenty-five-year-old Khelif, who made her professional boxing debut in 2018, has competed as a woman throughout her career, and has also participated in Tokyo Olympics. However, Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-Ting were disqualified from the 2023 World Championships in New Delhi after they failed the International Boxing Association's (IBA) eligibility rules.
The IBA, at the time, did not specify what test standards the two had failed to clear but clarified that they did not undergo testosterone examinations. They were cleared to compete in Paris after the IBA was stripped of its status as boxing’s governing body last year by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Following the gender eligibility debate on social media, the IOC issued a statement supporting the players.
“Every person has the right to practise sport without discrimination. The two athletes have been competing in international boxing competitions for many years in the women’s category, including the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, International Boxing Association (IBA) World Championships and IBA-sanctioned tournaments,” the statement said.
Coming to Khelif’s defence, the Algerian Olympic Committee called it “unethical targeting and maligning" of an esteemed athlete with "baseless propaganda from certain foreign media outlets.”
It must also be noted here that Algeria does not support the civil rights of the LGBTQIA+ community.
What do the rules say?
IOC’s statement also mentioned that the athletes participating in the boxing tournament at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 comply with the competition’s eligibility and entry regulations, as well as all applicable medical regulations set by the Paris 2024 Boxing Unit.
These rules are also complied with during the qualifications of various competitions, including the boxing tournaments of the 2023 European Games, Asian Games, and Pan American Games and Pacific Games.
The Paris 2024 Boxing Unit has used the Tokyo 2020 boxing rules for Paris 2024 to keep things consistent.
“These Tokyo 2020 rules were based on the post-Rio 2016 rules, which were in place before the suspension of the boxing International Federation by the IOC in 2019 and the subsequent withdrawal of its recognition in 2023,” IOC stated.
It also mentioned that the gender and age of the athletes are based on their passports, as per the previous Olympic boxing competitions.
IOC spokesman, Mark Adams, said, “Testosterone is not a perfect test. Many women can have testosterone which is in what would be called ‘male levels’ and still be women, still compete as women .... but I hope we all agree that we are not calling for people to go back to the bad old days of sex testing.”
Calling the controversy as “contrary to good governance,” the IOC stated that the “eligibility rules should not be changed during ongoing competition, and any rule change must follow appropriate processes and should be based on scientific evidence.”
In 2023, IOC had withdrawn the recognition of IBA. The sports authority has asked the National Boxing Federations to form a new International Federation before the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028.
Society’s perception
While some think Khelif has an unfair advantage, there are others who believe this is a classic case of society’s outlook on what constitutes womanhood and womanly behaviour.
For long women athletes have been criticised as they do not conform to societal expectations of how they should look. For instance, tennis star Serena Williams has spoken about being likened to a man because of her strong and muscular body.
However, in Khelif’s case, some of the criticism has come from women themselves.
Perceptions apart, the science behind the issue is also quite complex.
Commenting on the controversy, Madhvi Chandavarkar, a transwoman who has worked in both public policy and public relations says, “Perceptions of testosterone levels come from the effects of added testosterone. There is significant variation between natural levels and athletic performance because, unsurprisingly, the science is quite complex on the issue. This is something typically not understood by the public. Trans athletes have been allowed to compete at IOC events since 2004 (the guidelines have since been amended multiple times)."
She adds, “Michael Phelps has a wingspan that is taller than his height, and Lionel Messi’s low centre of gravity emerged, at least partly, from his growth hormone deficiency. No one comments on how Messi’s hormone therapy offered him an advantage because it is viewed as a ‘medical condition’ but this is also true for gender dysphoria.”
Closer home, Santhi Soundarajan, a track-and-field athlete from Tamil Nadu was stripped of her Asian Games medal in 2006 after she was subjected to a sex test. She was later told she had failed a gender test.
Chandavarkar believes that ultimately it is about policing womanhood with the animus of misogyny and racism.
“Determinations of who is womanly or feminine have long been used to exclude people who defy patriarchal norms and have disproportionately affected women of colour (which is what is happening here). Whether it is people calling Serena Williams a gorilla or the exclusion of Caster Semenya/Dutee Chand, these arguments are actually quite old,” she says.
The controversy surrounding Khelif has certainly opened up the need to discuss, deliberate and understand issues around gender identity, sexual development, and fairness in sports.
Edited by Swetha Kannan
