A human rights group says the International Olympic Committee’s rules on gender eligibility at the women’s boxing tournament in Paris have created a ‘dangerous and absurd spectacle.’
Italian fighter Angela Carini abandoned her fight against Algeria’s Imane Khelif after just 46 seconds on Thursday.
Khelif was one of two fighters who were disqualified from last year’s women’s world championships for failing to meet gender eligibility criteria, but have been admitted to the Olympic tournament by the IOC.
Carini left the ring bloodied and tearful after the short bout and Fiona McAnena, the director of campaigns at human rights charity Sex Matters, said: ‘It’s grossly unfair that at the pinnacle of her sporting career, Italian boxer Angela Carini had to concede for her own safety.
‘The look of sheer pain and devastation in her face at that moment should be enough to end the absurd and dangerous spectacle of men in women’s sport once and for all.
‘People are rightly outraged, and the IOC should be ashamed, but
they seem to be shameless as this is their policy in action.
‘Male advantage used against women makes nearly every sport unfair, and some sports unsafe, including boxing. This is still being played out in many sports worldwide.
‘The IOC spokesman, Mark Adams, said in a press conference that some women have testosterone in the male range but this is nonsense, as testosterone levels in healthy men and women don’t overlap. Women with male levels of testosterone are either seriously ill, doping, or are actually men.
‘Adams also said that we should not go back to the ‘bad old days’ of sex testing, but surveys suggest that most elite women athletes want exactly that – a once-in-a-lifetime cheek swab that protects the integrity of women’s sport.’
Elon Musk, the owner of the social media platform X, endorsed efforts to get a campaign in support of Carini trending.
American swimmer Riley Gaines, who has campaigned for women’s rights in her sport, wrote on the platform: ‘Men don’t belong in women’s sports #IStandW
ithAngelaCarini Let’s get it trending.’
Musk quoted Gaines’ post and replied: ‘Absolutely.’
Source: Ghana News Agency