PARIS – Algerian Olympic boxer Imane Khelif has found herself at the centre of a gender debate in sports after her Italian opponent pulled out of their bout less than a minute into the match.

Khelif failed the International Boxing Association’s unspecified gender qualification tests in 2023. The International Olympic Committee says Khelif has the right to compete as a woman.

Here’s what you need to know about Khelif and the controversy he finds himself in.

WHO IS IMANE KHELIF?

Born in 1999, Khelif grew up playing football in his rural village of Tiaret in western Algeria. Now a UNICEF ambassador, he previously told the UN children’s agency that he was dodging punches from local boys who made him take up boxing when he was 16.

Training was not easy. Since his father worked as a welder in the desert, he had to sell scrap metal and his mother’s couscous to scrape together a bus ticket 10 km (6 miles) to the nearest gym.

When asked what made him most proud, he is quoted in his UNICEF biography as saying, “Being able to overcome obstacles in my life.”

HOW HAS KHELIF’S CAREER PROGRESSED SO FAR?

Khelif, who quickly caught the attention of the Algerian boxing federation, finished 17th in the 2018 Women’s World Championship after being knocked out in the first round.

She represented Algeria at the Tokyo Olympics, losing in the quarterfinals to Ireland’s Kellie Harrington. In 2022, Khelif finished second in the women’s World Championships after losing to Ireland’s Amy Broadhurst.

Hours before he was set to box for a gold medal at the 2023 World Championships in Delhi, Khelif was disqualified for failing to meet the International Boxing Association’s eligibility criteria.

WHAT DO THE ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA SAY?

Khelif and fellow Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting breached IBA eligibility rules, which include barring athletes with XY chromosomes from competing in women’s events.

The IBA says neither boxer underwent a testosterone test but was subjected to a separate, recognised test. Details of these tests remain confidential but show both men gained a competitive advantage, the IBA says.

The minutes of an IBA board meeting in March 2023 stated that “the athletes did not meet one of the eligibility criteria”, but did not specify which one. It did not specify whether they had XY chromosomes, which are usually associated with males but can be an indicator of differences in sexual development in females. No boxer has been shown to have a genetic condition.

WHY DID THE GENDER DEBATE RE-EMERGES IN PARIS?

In June 2023, the International Olympic Committee stripped the IBA of its status as the global governing body for boxing due to incomplete reforms in governance, finance and ethics.

That’s why the IOC is organizing the boxing events at the Paris Games and allowing Khelif and Lin to compete under its own eligibility rules.

The gender debate was sparked when Khelif’s Italian opponent Angela Carini abandoned their Round 16 cruiserweight bout less than a minute into the bout due to heavy blows.

Tesla founder Elon Musk, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and author JK Rowling criticized Khelif’s participation in the Games.

The head of the Algerian delegation at the Paris Olympics, Hayreddin Barbari, said the Algerian Olympic Committee supported Khalifa and had filed a complaint with the International Olympic Committee over the “immoral” campaign.

Khelif’s father described the attacks on his daughter as “immoral” and said she had brought honour to the family.

WHAT DOES THE IOC SAY?

The IOC’s latest guidelines, published in 2021, state that participation in such cases should be the default rule and that athletes should only be expelled from women’s competitions if there is a clear fairness or security issue.

“We have two boxers who were born women, raised women, have received women’s passports and have competed as women for many years, and that is a clear definition of a woman,” IOC Thomas Bach said.

The IOC also said Khelif and Lin were “victims of the IBA’s sudden and arbitrary decision” and were disqualified for 2023 without any due process.

The IOC said the boxers had competed in the women’s category without problems, including at the Tokyo Games and previous World Championships and tournaments sanctioned by the IBA, before the disqualification in 2023. REUTERS