SPECIAL: The Olympic boxing match between Algerian Imane Khelif and Italian Angela Carini on Thursday has sparked controversy in the sports world.

Khelif’s participation in the bout in Paris was condemned after the Algerian fighter failed a gender conformity test at the 2023 World Championships and was found to have male chromosomes, which was confirmed by the International Boxing Association.

Carini abandoned the fight 46 seconds into the fight, but boxing legend Jackie Kallen told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview that the fight should never have happened in the first place.

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Boxing manager Jackie Kallen says the fight between Algerian Imane Khelif and Italian Angela Carini should never have happened. (Amanda Edwards/Getty Images/File)

Angela Carini of Italy is seen competing against Imane Khelif of Algeria (not shown) in Paris on August 1, 2024. (Fabio Bozzani/Anadolu via Getty Images)

“The only reason I feel this way is because it’s banned everywhere in contact sports. I’m disappointed that anyone on the Olympic Committee would allow this to happen with the whole world watching,” Kallen said. “This is a black mark on boxing. We have enough problems with people being mean to the sport or finding other things to complain about. But this really doesn’t help us at all.”

Kallen is a pioneer in a male-dominated sport, having navigated the challenges of being a female manager of some of the sport’s biggest stars while leading James Toney and Bronco McKart to world championships.

Known as the “First Lady of Boxing,” her life inspired the 2004 film “Against the Ropes,” starring Meg Ryan. In 2023, she became the first female manager to be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Kallen knows firsthand the difference in hand-to-hand combat and the difference between a man and a woman when it comes to combat sports.

Jackie Kallen is shown with then boxer James Toney (Holly Stein/ALLSPORT/File)

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“Someone could get hurt very badly,” he told Fox News Digital. “It’s so wrong for this young girl to get shot and watch her dreams go down the drain.”

Carini said Thursday that one of Khelif’s punches “hurt so bad” that he pulled back.

Algerian Imane Khelif (right) and Italian Angela Carini are seen after the fight. (Reuters/Isabel Infantes)

IBA President Umar Kremlev said a test conducted at that time in 2023 determined Khelif had “XY chromosomes.” The IBA said on Wednesday that Khelif “failed to meet the eligibility criteria to participate in the women’s competition” and was found to have “competitive advantages over women.”

The International Olympic Committee has cleared Khelif to fight.

“Everyone competing in the women’s category complies with the competition eligibility rules,” IOC spokesman Mark Adams said. “They are listed as female on their passports and it says that’s what they are, that they are female.”

Kallen said that if it were up to her, she would remove Khelif from the Olympics and let Carini go.

Jackie Kallen (Paul Harris/Getty Images/File)

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Khelif is set to fight again on Saturday.

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